WB Wellbeing Magazine March 2022

BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40 51

W hile wellbeing for a person’s personal “The newer Looking at how the world is evolving, he feels that
life is important, mental and physical generation there is going to be a need for high-touch and high-EQ
wellbeing becomes equally important based skills.
for employees at their workplace.
With increasing competition and immense workload, doesn’t want According to him, wellness and wellbeing are going
people are drowning deeper due to stress and getting to work for to be a crucial aspect of what the workplaces of
exhausted, putting mental health at a greater risk. companies tomorrow will need. Explaining further, he said, “We
When quitting is not an option, one needs an under- are already seeing a sea change in the different ways
standing of HR at their workplace to keep the mental that don’t have organisation are attracting and retaining talent. The
and emotional wellbeing intact. employee- newer generation doesn’t want to work for compa-
friendly nies that don’t have employee-friendly practices. My
Thatte is a seasoned HR professional and a Certi- mission, hence, would be to help make my company
fied Corporate Wellness Specialist with over 13 years practices. My a frontrunner in the space of corporate wellness and
of corporate HR experience spanning across Talent wellbeing.”
Acquisition, Retail, Research and Analytics and PR/
Integrated Communications. He has developed a keen mission, hence, Wellbeing to him is a holistic sense of wellness backed
interest towards employee wellness and wellbeing over would be to by discipline, mindfulness and gratitude. He said that
a period. His strengths include people management, holistic wellbeing: be it mental, physical, emotional,
high EQ and an understanding of various mental health help make my financial and social, takes time and needs to be care-
issues like depression, anxiety and stress management. company a fully built and managed.
This helped him to not only approach the issues cor-
rectly but also raise the alarm bells at the right time. frontrunner Talking about his business model, Thatte said, “Edel-
in the space man has always kept its people first. People are at the
A meditation and mindfulness enthusiast, Thatte cur- of corporate heart of everything we do and hence, their wellness
rently spearheads the wellbeing initiative at his com- wellness and and wellbeing are of prime importance to us. Happy
pany titled ‘Livewell’ for the APAC region. He manages employees make happy workplaces is a mantra we
the EAP (Employee Assistance Program) in partnership wellbeing” have always believed in.” While the pandemic did pose
with ComPsych, for employee subscription to the highly its share of challenges, they have been able to brave
popular wellness app ‘Calm’, expert talks with nutrition- the storm because of their approach and practices. He
ists, dieticians and mental health practitioners, fitness added, “Whether it is providing guidance resources,
challenges, tobacco cessation programs, periodic concierge services, wellbeing applications, self-care
health assessments at the workplace, guided medita- holidays and days off, vaccination allowance for self
tions on a fortnightly basis which he himself conducts and family, flexi-time policies, extended work from
and more. home arrangements, work from home allowances etc.
Thatte’s journey into wellbeing began about five years — we have done it all to ensure our colleagues have
ago after a minor health scare and there has been no a seamless experience even though we are working
looking back since then. He said, “I took to mindfulness, remotely or as we’d like to call it, separated by the
Yoga and meditation.” pandemic, united by our culture.”

“Professionally speaking, my interest in employee Speaking on where he sees himself 20 years from now,
wellness and wellbeing began in late 2018. After the he said, “Heading the HR and people function and
onset of the pandemic, my belief in its relevance has being a torchbearer for all things wellness and well-
amplified. My interest in the field has led me to pursue being. My ultimate objective is to help put in place a
the CCWS (Certified Corporate Wellness Specialist) comprehensive and dedicated employee wellness and
certification which I duly completed in September wellbeing program at Edelman India & APAC.” He said
2021”, he added. He has also completed a certified that the pandemic has accelerated the required focus
course in ‘Managing Mental Health at The Workplace’. on overall employee wellness.

Thatte’s vision is to be able to curate and drive “I have a long way to go but am very hopeful of the
comprehensive wellness and wellbeing initiatives and future and have the confidence in my capabilities to
programs for his company in the immediate future. help deliver this,” he added. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

52 SPOTLIGHT BHARAT SACHDEVA

LIVING BY EXAMPLE

A
transformational
health and
personal
development
coach with
over 15 years
of experience
in the coaching
domain, Bharat
Sachdeva, a
health and fitness
consultant at
WarriorYogi Fit,
aims to train at
the grassroots
level and build
confidence in
India’s youth by
staying fit

Photographs by Ritesh Sharma

B harat Sachdeva is a health and personal development coach and also the driving force
behind the ‘Warrior Yogi Fit’ movement, a holistic system anchored in health and wellness
practices. He specialises in overall healthy lifestyle coaching and functional body movement
practices for longevity and activating core strength to go through the everyday challeng-
es life throws their way, inspiring and coaching both his clients as well as corporate teams to a lifestyle
change, to live a healthy, happy, optimum and productive life using simple mindfulness and breathing
rituals to find balance and clarity.

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53BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

The present times have shown us the importance of “My mission is for the pre-Olympic Camp, where he worked closely with
both these aspects, to take utmost care of our health to reach out to athletes offering physical and mental conditioning prac-
and wellbeing. He is also an international facilitator as many people, tices using time tested yogic science of breath-work, vi-
and a teacher, having travelled to numerous European sualisation, meditation and asanas. It immensely helped
countries as well as the USA in the past five years to lead communities the athletes to connect and harness their energies, by
retreats and workshops on holistic wellbeing. Being an and help them doing some specific breathing exercises before the bout
elite athlete and having competed at the international to be in the heightened state of awareness, as well as
level as a swimmer at the 2019 FINA World Swimming realise their other breathing and mental exercises during the fight
Masters, he completed his first Ironman triathlon 70.3 true potential rounds to stay calm, collected and focused on achieving
in October 2019 in Marrakech, Morocco. Sachdeva lives to become the the ultimate objective and not let the emotions or crowd
and exemplifies the importance of a healthy lifestyle and hooting run over their performance.
wellbeing. best version
of themselves Bharat makes sure he spends enough time volunteer-
Realising True Potential using positive ing and helping underprivileged children. He recently
When asked about his future course of action, Sachdeva lifestyle changes volunteered for the Good Food Project by offering and
says, “I see myself as someone embodying the ideals I delivering free food to the workers at the cremation
believe in and living by example, by building and running and living in grounds in Delhi/NCR during the Covid-19 outbreak. He
a one of its kind ‘Wellness Center’ close to nature, alignment with regularly organises community runs to promote health
offering a holistic experience and facilitating people on and fitness for underprivileged children. The last event,
the wellness journey in the best possible manner. I also the circadian held on December 25, 2020, had over 200 participants
see myself penning numerous books and being a leading rhythm, with and every participant got medals and certificates along
voice on wellness and personal development, inspiring quality sleep, with meals. He constantly strives to provide training and
the young generation to take the mantle and lead the optimal body impart positive health and fitness values to street kids
way by building new networks, sharing this vision to movement, from underprivileged backgrounds.
reach out to the common person to realise their true clean eating
potential.” and emotional Firming Foundation
wellness using Bharat has committed to living a “high-performance”
WarriorYogi Fit is a fruit of Bharat’s passion. Speaking breathwork life, making the most of his potential through research,
on how he makes the company sustain itself, Bharat and meditation travel, lifelong learning, mindful actions, sharing his gifts
explains that it has a consumer-specific subscrip- forming the as a teacher, counsellor. He has been a student of life
tion-based business model that offers individual foundation,” and has been teaching and sharing to support others to
consultation and customised programs to offer in-house rediscover their passion for life, live more joyfully, with
wellness programs and weekend retreats for corporate the best of health and lifestyle practices for everyday
teams. life.

Bharat has been working relentlessly with the youngsters When asked about his vision in the years to come,
for more than a decade, living his mission as an athlete he said he aims to offer and provide everyone with
and a coach to reach out to the grassroots, working practical tools and straightforward everyday practices
closely with young kids as well as teenagers, imparting to feel empowered in countering the mental, physical
positive values by organising ‘Summer Swimming Camps’ and emotional stresses caused due to hectic and poor
in Delhi, using sports participation as a tool to learn lifestyles.
essential life skills like swimming and fitness to build
confidence, discipline, accountability, positive lifestyle “My mission is to reach out to as many people, com-
and prevent drowning accidents. munities and help them realise their true potential to
become the best version of themselves using positive
Change where it Matters lifestyle changes and living in alignment with the
Bharat was part of the High-Performance Coaching circadian rhythm, with quality sleep, optimal body
Team that works closely with the athletes preparing for movement, clean eating and emotional wellness using
the Tokyo Olympics. He spent time with the team at the breathwork and meditation forming the foundation,”
NIS Patiala. He later travelled with them to Assisi, Italy, he said. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

54 SPOTLIGHT DEEPTI PATHAK

WELLBEING:
POSITIVE PHYSICAL &
EMOTIONAL HEALTH

Deepti Pathak, H aving lost my mother to a traumatic accident at the young age of 16, followed
Founder & CEO, by 2 years of depression and recovery. I started my journey of wellbeing,
Deepti Pathak self-discovery and personal development at the young age of 18. Wellbeing
Company, in a chat for me means fulfilling all my emotional, psychological, physiological and spir-
with BW Wellbeing itual needs above everything else. The quality of your life is more important
World shares than, life itself and I believe that a satisfied life is more important than a successful one,”
some interesting says Pathak.
insights into her
roller coaster She believes that just like our brick and mortar residence, our life is also built on top of four
journey of pillars. Pathak explains that pillar number one is ‘mindset and emotions’, pillar number two
wellbeing. She is ‘relationships’ both personal and professional. Pillar number three is ‘health’ both physi-
also explains what cal and mental and pillar number four is ‘career & finances.’
wellbeing means
to her. Mindset & Emotions
“The first pillar is mindset and emotions. Your mindset controls your emotions, emotions
inspire us to take action and the actions we take determine our reality. But the problem is
that most of us have zero understanding of how to control our thoughts. Most of us think of
our emotions and mental states as things that happen outside our span of control. When
faced with a challenge, remember there is always a possible solution and the effectiveness
of the solution depends on the mindset you have,” Pathak underlines.

The second pillar Pathak says is relationships, both personal and professional. “If you want
to achieve anything significant in this life you must learn to work effectively with all kinds
of people. Humans are social beings and a lot of our deep relationships are based on a
connection that exchanges something for something else. The ability to understand what
motivates others, relate in a positive manner and develop strong bonds with others at home
or the workplace, inevitably makes those with higher people skills the most fulfilled and the
most successful.”

She further highlights, “The third pillar is health and nothing in life is more valuable than
good physical and mental health. Without health, there is no happiness, no peace, no
success and no wealth. What stops people from taking action is not a lack of motivation.
It’s the unexpressed emotions and limiting beliefs. It’s the emotional and mental level. If you
deal with that, making changes on the behavioural level becomes so much easier. And if
you don’t address the mental and emotional level then you’ll see a lot of start-stop and un-
finished projects. You will keep hitting those internal obstacles that are stopping you from

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55BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

the lives of others. My vision is to build a world where
we are thriving and not just surviving, a world where we
wake up inspired and feel fulfilled by what we do.”
In 20 years from now, Pathak envisions herself estab-
lishing a world-renowned brand and being recognised
among the top 50 leaders across the globe in the
personal wellbeing and self-development space.

Making Ends Meet
Explaining her company’s work model, Pathak says,
“Deepti Pathak Company is a people development
and training firm established to empower individuals
and organisations to make a significant improvement
in their performance levels and lives. So often in life,
people struggle to go after their goals without inhibi-
tions and insecurities. Spend valuable time waiting for
motivation and the right opportunities but nothing ever
happens. That’s where I come in. I empower leaders
and ambitious individuals to 10 fold their personal
power, become charismatic leaders and leave their
mark on the world, without inhibitions, insecurities,
regret and strained relationships.”

“Our training solutions bring forward ground-breaking

Photographs by Ritesh Sharma studies of human psychology, a unique array of coach-

making the changes you want. And the last pillar, the Often in life, ing methodologies and some of the most powerful &
fourth pillar is career and finances. The first three pillars transformative ideas that include NLP (Neuro-lin-
of life support the last one directly. Your mindset, day
to day emotional patterns, network and relationships all people struggle guistic Programming), CBT (Cognitive Behavioural
come together to nurture and build the fourth pillar.”
Therapy), Hypnotic Story Telling and other transfor-
Thrive, Not Just Survive
Deepti ascertains, “If any one or more of these pillars to go after their mational techniques. We provide; Executive Coaching,
in your life is weak, the rest will be strained with extra
load and if you want to scale your life to new heights you goals without Leadership Development Workshops and Keynote
must build each of these pillars brick by brick simultane- Addresses in an interactive, inspiring and entertaining
ously. The truth is that the most important factor in the
growth and success of any leader is their psychology and inhibitions and environment. Where many training resources only fo-
skillset and remember, it’s always 80 per cent Psychol-
ogy and just 20 per cent skill. To become a great leader insecurities. cus on skill enhancement and goal-setting, our training
you need to be able to destroy the limitations within your modules go much deeper to explore the psychology
own mind.”
Spend valuable underlying people’s difficulties with personal growth,
Speaking about her vision and mission, Pathak affirms, “I
am on a mission to empower individuals and institutions, time waiting emotional intelligence and self-management,” she
to help them surpass all their limitations and make a adds.
significant improvement in the quality of their lives and
for motivation
Tony Robbins is Pathak’s favourite person in the well-
and the right being space. She informs, “I am an ardent admirer of

opportunities Tony Robbins, the work he has done and the difference
he has made in his lifetime.”

but nothing ever

happens. That’s Pathak defines wellbeing as a state of positive physical
and emotional health, one that empowers us to live our

where I come in. highest potential across all areas of life and create the

extraordinary life we truly desire and deserve. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

56 INTERVIEW DIMPY MAHANTA

PROMOTING WELLBEING
IN THE NORTHEAST

I want to spread T he nature of the mental illness or personal wellbeing has been the subject of discussion
mental health over the years. However, when it comes to a better understanding and being sensitive
awareness towards people, we have a long way to go.
and promote
emotional
wellbeing
amongst
the different
segments of
the society
in the entire
Northeastern
region of
our country,
said Dimpy
Mahanta,

Founding Head,
Department

of Psychology,
Cotton

University.

In India, many people still do not give importance to personal wellbeing which led many of them to
mental issues like depression, anxiety, etc. There are several organisation working in the field to

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57BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

provide a better environment for the people who are “Wellbeing What is your vision and mission?
dealing with mental health issues. implies a state of To spread mental health awareness and promote
high resilience to mental and emotional wellbeing amongst the different
Dr. Mahanta who is extensively working in the field of cope with day to segments of the society in the entire Northeastern
mental health awareness, in a conversation with BW day stresses and region of our country through my brainchild North East
Wellbeing World talked about her journey, what well- Indian Association of Applied Psychology (NEIAAP). My
being means to her and what she wants to do in future uncertainties mission is to carry out monthly workshops and lecture
and how she wants to serve people. of life, good series on mental health awareness and promote mental
wellbeing with experts from India and abroad. I want
What is your definition of wellbeing? mental, physical, to conduct workshops on drug abuse awareness and
According to me, wellbeing implies a state of high emotional prevention.
resilience to cope with day to day stresses and uncer- health and
tainties of life, good mental, physical, emotional health I want to render my services through my expertise in
and to coexist in harmony and peace in the community. to coexist in the following key areas: stress management, resilience
It also means to have a purpose in life and be a fully harmony and building, conflict management and negotiation and
functioning individual. enhancing workplace wellbeing. I also want to provide
peace in the free counselling and carry out stress management and
How did your wellbeing journey start and what community” resilience-building workshops for children, adolescents,
does it mean to you?  adults and the elderly population in the Northeastern
My wellbeing journey had started once I completed my states.
Masters in Psychology and got into my PhD program at  
Delhi University in 2004. My PhD was on Occupational
Stress, Quality of Work Life and the Organizational Who is your favourite person in the wellbeing
Climate of the Employees Working in Multinational
Companies. Just after my PhD, I carried out research on space other than yourself?
organizational role stress amongst police personnel in Matt Perelstein based in California who has been
terrorist affected districts of my state (Assam) in 2009. fighting cancer and yet his passion, determination and
This was well appreciated by the then Director General enthusiasm in contributing towards enhancing the
of Police (DGP) of Assam and the Bureau of Police emotional intelligence of individuals around the world
Research and Development under the Ministry of Home is very significant. It is very inspirational for many psy-
Affairs (Government of India) and got published in the chologists working in the wellbeing sector.
prestigious Indian Police Journal.
Tell us about your business model.
Thereafter, I started working towards the wellbeing My organisation is primarily focusing on the wellbeing
sector and have done hundreds of workshops on stress of different segments of society. I am planning to have
management, resilience building, enhancing mental state-wise coordinators of my organisation for all the
wellbeing, just to name a few. All my research work has eight Northeastern states that will be carrying out
made a huge impact on policy making and implementa- various workshops, lecture series, awareness programs
tion in my region. and counselling services under the banner of NEIAAP.
Meaningful empirical research in areas of concern will
Since 2015, when I changed my base from Delhi to be carried out with an aim to have implications at both
Guwahati, my hometown, I took an oath to contribute policy-making and implementation levels respectively.
wholeheartedly towards the mental and emotional  
wellbeing of the people of Northeast region. It is very
close to my heart. I have been conducting mental Where do you see yourself 20 years from now?
health awareness programs and taking up meaningful 20 years down the line, I see myself as a leading name
projects and providing free counselling to scores of in the education sector of the country with many
people since the last six years. books to my credit. Apart from that, I hope to make
noteworthy contributions in the domain of mental and
emotional wellbeing in the Northeastern part of the
country. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

58 SPOTLIGHT DISHA VARMA

THE SLEEP REVOLUTION

Disha Varma, O ne of the top five excellence installation specialists mentored by A&H, Disha Varma, a
Partner, A&H partner at the company, has worked with children and adults from different backgrounds
Quality Sleep and sects of life. She says the driving motive behind what she pursues is in helping people
supports 1500+ evolve because everyone deserves their best shot at life.
individuals to
improve sleep
patterns after
the Covid-19
outbreak.
The wellness
professional
designs
customised
sleep programs
that can be
integrated
into individual
lifestyles
to improve
immunity,
productivity
and emotional
prosperity

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59BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

Building Programs on Meditative Sleep “My mission is Designing EIT-backed programs
In her quest to help people evolve, she has always to revolutionise Varma aims to evolve the quality of millions of lives using
helped them ameliorate their sleeping patterns. She the concept of EIT and equip them with knowledge, mindsets and capa-
says, “Meditative quality sleep is something of utmost sleep and ideas bilities to lead a healthy, fulfilling and meaningful life.
importance to my father, which was one of the crucial
factors in my accelerated learning and growth journey”. and notions The EIT-backed program is designed to be highly person-
When the pandemic peaked and lockdowns happened, and myths alised to the individual’s challenges & circumstances (tan-
she realised that Covid patients after recovery were gible & intangible), for example, it can help people working
struggling with inadequate sleep. The majority of the attached to it. night shifts evolve their sleeping patterns and eventually
population had almost lost their ability to fall asleep After the fitness their lifestyle. Such evolved sleep patterns subsequently
naturally. Either they were crashing themselves to sleep improve energy levels, productivity, wellness and health
due to untimely overuse of screens or they had to use revolution, that sustain over time. Besides educating people about
external substances. The lack of adequate sleep has people are more quality sleep and the factors impacting it, Disha Varma
impacted their immunity in the times when it was needed and her team focus on identifying and changing the lim-
the most. During those times, she helped more than aware and it iting mindsets, beliefs, habits that are not allowing people
1500 individuals significantly improve the quality of their has become to attain high-quality sleep every single night.
sleep. Moreover, nearly 97 per cent of people suffering cool to workout
from migraines for an average of four years overcame When asked about who has been her mentor in this
migraines with improved sleeping patterns after taking now. I want journey, she comments, “Antano Solar John, being my
her services. the concept of mentor and my school for EIT education. He has taught
sleep to be cool me everything that I needed to bring about targeted
Starting out as a Wellness Professional too rather than changes in the person’s mindsets about sleep, break-
Growing up with an emotionally evolved father, a being a synonym ing decades of limiting habits instantly. Analogically
committed mother and a solid family ecosystem, laid speaking, in marvel language, he is the Tony Stark to
the foundation for her to make the world a better place. for lazy.” my spiderman. And Harini, being my mentor and my
She says, “It actually starts even before you realise it answer to many questions that I ask myself in adverse
started”. At the age of 23, after finishing CA, when she situations. She has been instrumental for the way I view
realised mastering EIT by A&H could allow her to help my relationships now.”
people help themselves and lead a better, happier, more
integrated life. This journey led her to identify the lack Way Ahead in Fostering Wellness
of consistent, high-quality sleep and the very under- Wellbeing is a state of mind that in the truest sense
standing of the factors impacting the quality of sleep is should sustain in the harshest of circumstances.
the gap between complete health, physically, mentally Therefore, it is not just the elimination of unfavourable
and emotionally. This meant that everyone had a shot elements. Wellbeing is the state that allows you to deal
at leading an integrated lifestyle with complete physical with the unfavourable elements and come up with the
and emotional wellbeing, something that people direly solutions necessary. Mastering this state is a superior
needed during the pandemic. capability, that obviously can be learnt with a due com-
mitment to it.
High-quality adequate sleep is the single most import-
ant thing one can do for their health. Improved sleep “Millions of lives out there deserve and need something
patterns can help people resolve lifestyle problems like so natural and basic which will change their lifestyle and
indigestion, gastric problems, hormonal problems, high wellness in the most sustainable manner. My mission is
cholesterol, etc. Varma aspires to build a world where to revolutionise the concept of sleep and the ideas and
children are breaking patterns that stopped them from notions and myths attached to it. After the fitness rev-
sleeping well and performing at their peak, leading to olution, people are more aware and it has become cool
improved focus, concentration and performance, a world to work out now. I want the concept of sleep to be cool
where professionals and business people have attained too rather than being a synonym for lazy”, says Varma,
superior productivity, better concentration and less when asked about the future aspirations in this wellness
stress in challenging situations. industry. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

60 INTERVIEW HARI KRISHNAN

‘HOLISTIC
WELLBEING IS A
FUNDAMENTAL
RIGHT’

Co-Founder A&H
Trajectory Acceleration
Hari Krishnan’shunger
and passion to explore
technology and dream
to contribute to the
economy of India and
the world gave him an
opportunity to explore
the startup community
and an exposure to
business culture. With the
realisation about lives being
turned around by A&H,
he decided to immerse
himself in contributing to
it and making Excellence
Installation Technology
available for everyone.
Speaking to BW Wellbeing
World, Krishnan shared his
journey so far and plans for
the future.

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BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40 61

How did your wellbeing journey start and what “The technology that we have evolved
enables us to identify ahead of
does it mean to you? time, career related depression and
It was when I met Antano and Harini that I realised that mental illness, thus directly impacting
with Excellence Installation Technology, certain human emotional and financial wellness, in as
behaviours that are emotional limitations and baggage less as two months and in two weeks in
that people carry, can be made a thing of the past. What certain cases”
does it mean to me? Equality! Just like the right to equal-
ity, food, speech, expression, I think holistic wellbeing is
a fundamental right of a human being and bringing this
‘equality’ to humankind in several aspects of their lives is
what fascinates me. It means, making available to every
person, a technology by which anyone can get to their
next levels of wellbeing and thus their quality of life.

What is your vision and mission? powers teachers, doctors, medical experts, engineers
I believe, in the right hands, Excellence Installations as a and administrators (and literally any career) with
technology has the potential to change the trajectory of capabilities that can help them be ready for transition
the human world for good. This technological revolution and swift careers. Shifting jobs may be easy, but people
is in the nascent stages, as it was in the early days of in the wrong career remain depressed and stagnant
electricity. We are taking this electricity to the common for long. We take them on-board a 4-year subscription
man, so that everyone has light and laying the founda- model and provide them with the requisite capabilities,
tion for further innovations that we have not thought platforms to grow and excel in the career of their choice
about – to make the world a better place for generations while some of them create disruptive businesses in very
to come. specific niches.

Where do you see yourself 20 years from now? Who is your favourite person in the wellbeing
In today’s world, if you look at IT giants, the average space other than yourself?
lifespan of a company is 15-20 years. But if you look at Antano Solar John. Not only is he the Co-Founder of the
companies that are fundamental for life on earth, like technology of Excellence Installations, but he himself
electricity, General Electric had its 129 glorious years of is a master of a number of things, spanning across
existence. We, with Excellence Installations are taking verticals. A computer wizard himself (he was CTO at the
electricity to the world and in the next 20 years, we age of 23), he is a master at guitar, piano, mridangam,
should be seeing several different disruptive technol- – NLP, martial arts and so on. And all of it flows into
ogies across verticals that come to us, that are itself a everything else he does.
billion dollar industry based out of this very technology
of Excellence Installations that Antano and Harini found. I believe such mastery of skills is comparable to the
likes of Leonardo da Vinci and Albert Einstein, who
Tell us about your business model. were themselves masters at different things and such
A wise man said, “Your work is going to fill a large part of mastery and artistry is impossible without integrated
your life and the only way to be truly satisfied is to love wellness and wellbeing.
what you do”. Look at the reality – NCRB has revealed
that more than 42.5 per cent of the Indian Inc employ- What is your definition of wellbeing?
ees are depressed. Alignment of short and long term life goals, integrating
satisfaction and happiness across career, relationships,
The technology that we have evolved enables us to emotions, health and wealth, resulting in a harmonious,
identify ahead of time, career related depression and fulfilled life. 
mental illness, thus directly impacting emotional and
financial wellness, in as less as two months and in two
weeks in certain cases.

With Excellence Installation Technology, my team em-

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

62 INTERVIEW ILASHREE GOSWAMI

ALDHOO“ENWNAE’ELT”

Ilashree Goswami,yoga
psychotherapist at ilashrei

Anand believes that we
are what we think and

yoga psychology proves
this impeccably. “Yoga
is the only physical
activity in the world
that talks of calming
the mind even before
one gets on the
mat,” she says in
this interview with
BW Businessworld.
Edited Excerpts:

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

63BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

How did your wellbeing journey start and what that involves studying chakras and their psychology.
does it mean to you?
Yoga

I was always into spirituality and healing ever since I was psychology Today, Yoga is everything to me. It’s the magic in my
born, so much so that I even invented games around it life which I was searching for in others.

as a child to play with other kids. Then in school, my arti- deals with the
cles were already getting published in Hindustan Times.
But spirituality cannot be a career, especially when you root cause of That was quite the start for your journey and you
have come a long way. What is your goal from

are being tailored by schools and society to become an your issues. It here?
engineer, doctor or IAS officer. I remember standing in When you heal, you realise you don’t heal alone.
my school assembly and feeling upset about some of
doesn’t care how Instead, you share it, either consciously or subcon-

the most gifted children in sports who had to leave what many problems sciously, with others. Because now you are no longer
they are good at, just to chase the race. I’d even written in any race, nothing of that nature exists in this. So,
an article about how India is losing multiple Olympic one has - one when you see people struggling with emotional, phys-

awards each year, just because some of the best beings can have ical, other issues, you want to help them, irrespective
at sports were never allowed to pursue their dreams. of who and why. I guess that’s a non-negotiable gift

That article was never published but I learned that this multiple and given to you as you heal. This is why I’m on a life mis-
was not what I want. So I came to Mumbai to pursue sion to make yogic psychology more accessible and
writing as guided by my elder sister, who was already in
varied problems, popular. Yoga psychology deals with the root cause of

Mumbai. like in career, your issues. It doesn’t care how many problems one
At 23, I got my first IMDB credit as a Dialogue Writer and has - one can have multiple and varied problems, like

physical health, in career, physical health, relationships, etc, but yoga

posters all across mainstream newspapers and hoard- relationships, psychology has the power to help you find one single
ings in India had my name in them. Everyone started root cause to all your problems and focus on healing

calling me. I saw my name in the beginning titles on 70 etc, but yoga that.
mm but I didn’t feel what I should have. The sense of psychology has Do you see yourself achieving this a couple of
achievement was missing. Then at 27, I made India win

the first prize amongst 46 countries in screenplay writing the power to decades from now?
at the International Film Festival and Awards, Macau by Sooner or later, people will acknowledge the power of
UNESCO.
help you find yoga psychology. I want to be the one who’s integral

But when I was being awarded at Dada Saheb Phalke one single root in reviving this ancient wisdom and making it easily
Chitranagari by the Cultural Affairs Minister, instead of available to one and sundry. I see myself successful

cause to all your in having ashrams that teach yogic psychology for

beaming with joy, I was howling. I had to cancel all other problems and holistic healing globally. I also see myself making yoga
interviews and soon was under a monumental debt. psychology a mandatory subject in school curricu-

Literally, everything I ever experienced was traumatising focus on healing lums.
me like a tornado, my father’s death, sexual violation, that. Is there a lesson you take from the crisis we
getting bullied, abused.

faced last year?

I was already into yoga since 2014, but I didn’t like it When we talk or think about healing, we only think of

much at that time and thought it’s nothing more than how we can get better - but what if you don’t need

some set of exercises to keep oneself physically fit. But to get better anymore. What if you can eliminate the

that day, with no money at all, I walked for over three issues at their root cause because of which humans

hours and reached the Yoga Aashram, not knowing why suffer - whether emotionally, spiritually, physically,

and I read on the notice-board -- ‘Pain is inevitable, financially or personally in any way. Then we will not

Suffering is by Choice.’ – Helen Keller only grow within us but also give back this growth in

a magnified multitude in whatever we do. This will

I wanted to scream ‘It’s all a bluff’. But instead, I cried directly boom all the economies. And there are no

profusely. And then my journey towards yoga began. I better facts to prove this than the pandemic times we

just didn’t study physical yoga - the one we all know and are witnessing. Even the most influential superpower

do on our mats but also studied yoga psychotherapy economies of the world came to stand still when the

wellbeing of their citizens was hit. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

64 INTERVIEW JAIVARDHAN AGARWAL

ALUIYPVULERISFVTTEIHNDRGAOHUUGMHAN

It is not very often one
sees a startup achieving
recognition for its work in
the same year of its launch,
but one such startup,
based on Ayurveda has
successfully made it
happen. Ayurvridhi was
founded by Jaivardhan
Agarwal earlier this
year with the mission to
enhance the life of people,
by combining the spirit of
Ayurveda with a cutting-
edge approach that
utilises strong substances
sourced from rural India.
Speaking to BW Wellbeing
World, Agarwal gives a
deeper insight about the
organisation’s inception
and his mission.

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

65BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

What is your definition of wellbeing? “We respect of Ayurveda to heal the human body not just externally
For me, wellbeing means freedom and peace of the time and nature but internally.
inner self. This is a journey that millions of humans over
thousands of years have taken. Only when your inner self and bring the Where do you see yourself 20 years from now?
is at rest, are you ready to address what most consider the best of India Ayurvridhi aspires to be a pioneer in this healthcare and
sole focus of beauty – the physical self. We need to start Ayurveda sphere and in turn aims to provide people with
addressing the root causes of a disease to repair our body through a a healthier alternative that imbibes virtuous traditional
at all levels – physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. Our capsule of remedies and protective benefits from the treasured
core purpose is to heal. This means facilitating wellness and clarity dipped methods of Ayurveda with the most modern revolutionary
aligning people around common ideals of moksha. We need in wellness and technology. Ayurvridhi strives to create a sustainable
to excel at creating a feeling of belonging to something enveloped brand by sourcing raw materials native to a region and
that transcends the individual – uplifting all. in purity. Our also keeping our entire supply chain 100 per cent organic
mission is to and employing vegan practices. We continue to be sus-
How did your wellbeing journey start and what does improve the tainable and have created an iconic brand offering a wide
life of people, range of supplements, foods and wellness treatments
it mean to you? through the across the globe.
I have often been asked how my tryst with Ayurveda and essence of
thereby the inception of the brand ‘Ayurvridhi’ began. Ayurveda with Tell us about your business model.
The brand has its roots in a personal problem. I had been revolutionary The brand was formerly launched online through an
suffering from severe allergy rhinitis and skin inflammation techniques e-commerce website. We have now also established our
since the age of 17. Every night I would scratch myself until using potent offline presence at three locations in east India. We are
the skin started bleeding. My father took me to the finest of ingredients from working towards expanding this offline presence at 10
doctors and hospitals across India. I was given high doses across rural more locations across India within a span of two months.
of Fexofenadine and steroids but this merely offered me
temporary relief for a short span of 24-48 hours. With time India” We are looking to grow and venture in areas such as well-
passing by, the dosages kept increasing as the tolerance ness foods and treatments. We aspire to permeate the
level for these antibiotics in my body grew subsequently global market in Dubai and USA very soon. We are geared
causing my health to further degrade. It was only three towards building our presence in online marketplaces
years ago that I chanced upon Ayurveda and adopted it such as Amazon and Nykaa.
to heal, detox and balance my inner self. I realised the true
power of this alternative medicine system. I am not here Currently, we offer a range of lifestyle medicines or sup-
to challenge any industry of medical science. I respect plements ranging from neem and peppermint oil capsules
all branches of medicine and sciences, however I am an to improve gut health and heal the skin to black cumin oil
ardent believer of Ayurveda, as a way of living. It was this capsules that have rich antibacterial properties, amongst
realisation that gave birth to Ayurvridhi to provide wellness other products with rejuvenating properties. We also offer
in the purest and most transparent form. products to improve immunity, women’s health and men’s
prostate and heart health. We also aim to soon increase
What is your vision and mission? our range of products with a focus on issues which have
‘Chinta Chita Samaan Hoti Hai’ is a colloquialism derived not been adequately addressed such as women’s health,
from the Hindi language. The Indian proverb means that mental health and sleep.
fear and anxiety is more dangerous than the real problem.
This has remained etched in my memory and the impor- Who is your favourite person in the wellbeing space
tance of balanced mental health has translated into the other than yourself?
brand that I have created. Ayurvridhi was created with a My favourite person in the wellbeing space is Sadhguru ji.
vision to ‘uplift human lives through Ayurvedic science’ I like his mastery of the mechanisms of life, an outcome
and take Ayurveda to a global platform, complete with of his profound experience of the self, which guides in
revolutionary technology and the rich culture of India that exploring the subtler dimensions of life. His unique ability
is derived from Hindu Vedic literature. We respect time and makes the ancient yogic sciences relevant to contempo-
nature and bring the best of India through a capsule of rary minds, acting as a bridge to the deeper dimensions
clarity dipped in wellness and enveloped in purity. Our mis- of life. His approach does not ascribe to any belief system
sion is to improve the life of people, through the essence but offers methods for self-transformation that are both
of Ayurveda with revolutionary techniques using potent proven and powerful. 
ingredients from across rural India. We believe in the power

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

66 INTERVIEW JENNIFER SCHWALBE PRABHU

TAHMEALGAMATION OF
POSITIVE CHANGES

With a vision of a healthier
human race and planet earth
itself,Jennifer Schwalbe
Prabhu (MD), CEO & Co-
Founder, Circee Health,
strives to gradually minimise
the burden of disease not
just in India, but worldwide.
She speaks on this and more
in this conversation with
BW Wellbeing World. Edited
excerpts:

How did your wellbeing journey start and what
does it mean to you?
My wellbeing journey started officially about four
years ago. I have been a pure vegetarian for most of
my adult life and transitioned to whole-foods, plant-
based since the past five years, when my husband
and I began working together to reverse and prevent
chronic diseases in my US-based patients and now
we are doing the same for our patients in India. At
that time, it had become apparent to us that through
simple albeit not easy lifestyle changes, it was pos-
sible to significantly decrease the dosage of or even

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

67BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

completely stop our patients’ medications and other Wellbeing is an healthcare. Every doctor and healthcare practitioner’s
treatments. amalgamation ultimate goals should be in the direction of actually
of positive preventing chronic diseases and reversing them in
Not only did the ‘pill burden’ and expense of treatment changes that those that already suffer, permanently. We envision
disappear, but so did excess weight, mood disorders, fa- all humans that our app will be used by millions the world over
tigue, sleep issues and countless other problems. What a should strive to and that people will travel from afar to learn how sim-
gift to be able to erase years of pain with natural treat- attain, which ple it is to change the direction of their health for the
ments. We also take pride in the fact that every single is a pristine better. We hope that in the future, other organisations
one of our treatments is backed by scientific evidence. environment with similar thinking, NGOs and governments, will join
Each method can be harkened back to well-known and both inside and hands with us in combating this ominous threat.
respected medical journal articles and esteemed re- out. Excellent
searchers. Now, we can truly celebrate every single one physical, mental How have you structured your business model to
of our patients’ successes, big and small, as they are all and emotional
exciting and meaningful to us. health are at achieve this?
the pinnacle of Our business model is subscription-based for now.
It is from this that our company, Circee Health, was born. these as well as We have distilled our method into an AI-augmented
The name is derived from ‘Sarsi’, the proto-Greek word a supportive smartphone app that will help us reach and teach
for ‘Saraswati’. As such, we take our inspiration and and loving millions in their journey towards wellbeing. The
blessings from the goddess of knowledge and teaching, community, secondary, post-pandemic, model is a traditional pay-
in the hopes that we will inspire others to do the same. clean living as-you-go model for in-person consulting - for now
space and the via telehealth and later in our in-person clinics and
What are some of the goalposts that you have set commitment retreats. Our goal is to have these wellness retreats
for yourself? to a lifetime of where clients can participate in and learn from im-
Our vision is that of a healthier human race and planet education of self mersive and holistic experiences in peaceful locales,
earth itself. We strive to gradually minimise the burden and others. for now, throughout India.
of disease not just in India, but worldwide. We also
take pride in making our methods applicable to all Who is your favourite person in the wellbeing
ages - from babies to the elderly - as we believe that
every person deserves to live a long and fruitful life. It space other than yourself?
is important to understand that we teach the fact that It sounds contrived, but my favourite person in the
inheritable disease is not a given and the path of some wellbeing space just happens to be my husband, Ajoy!
of our genetics can actually be re-routed to a bright- He has always been my biggest cheerleader and in-
er and healthier way forward. Whether it is through a spiration as we move forward in the quest of achieving
plant-based diet, mindfulness, exercise, improved social our dreams. He contributes his incredibly diverse
or emotional health, amongst other methods, we believe knowledge base to our company, incorporating years
that each person that we teach will be invigorated and of knowledge acquired from multiple masters degrees,
hopefully inspired to pay it forward. Our mission is to an MBA, a self-taught IT background, an exceptionally
help shape a future where medications are minimised artistic right side of the brain and most importantly,
and healthy lifestyles prevail. A tomorrow where patients experience in working at the NIH, the world’s foremost
are no longer intimidated by their doctors, but see them institution of medical knowledge. Without him, I’d
as a source of support and empathy. In essence, we likely be plodding along, in a small clinic only reaching
strive to fix the broken doctor-patient relationship and hundreds, instead of aspiring to change the lives of
to eventually remould the healthcare system into pre- millions of people.
vention, best practice and evidence-based system.
What is your definition of wellbeing?
And what do you see as your long-term plan for Wellbeing, to me, is an amalgamation of positive
yourself? changes that all humans should strive to attain - that
We have big dreams. Over the next several years, we is, a pristine environment both inside and out. As a
want to see Circee Health as a global leader in driving trained physician, I of course believe that excellent
the transformation towards a less expensive yet, more physical, mental and emotional health are at the
effective alternative to traditional compensation-based pinnacle of these - as well as a supportive and loving
community, clean living space and the commitment to
a lifetime of education of self and others. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

68 SPOTLIGHT JOSHUA SAMUEL G

CWINRETELHALETNIEFNSIGESLADNOIMF PACT

“Wellness is
the complete

integration
of body, mind
and spirit. It is
the realisation

that
everything we
do, think, feel

and believe
has an effect
on our state
of wellbeing,’
said Joshua

Samuel G,
Managing

Partner,
Excellence
Installation
Businesses,
Antano and

Harini.

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

69BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

I ssues related to mental health and wellbeing “I want to enable point in time he lost hope and was frustrated. Rela-
have become extremely important for everyone. entrepreneurs, tionships back home were impacted. However, one
There are times when public dialogue and visionaries video he saw on YouTube named “What is Excellence
organisation who are working in the field can and industrial Installations?” came as a ray of new hope in his life.
bring major changes. stalwarts to get
into a 4-year Of Enabling
It is expected that one in every four individuals is prob- subscription For Samuel, the coming time is also crucial, as he
ably going to experience the ill effects of an emotional model and wants to create an impact in the field of wellbe-
wellbeing problem at some phase of their lives. Mental provide ing. “We have enabled thousands of Excellence
issues can be portrayed as an expansive exhibit of con- them with Installation businesses that provide significantly
ditions that influence an individual’s mindset, thinking the requisite faster, effective and pain-free solutions to wellness
and conduct. Now and then these conditions can be platforms to outcomes in over 500 very niche areas, in over 150
critical to the point that they influence an individual’s countries,” he said.
personal satisfaction. On different occasions, the con- createdisruptive
ditions can be gentle. businesses in “I will be mentoring select youths to become future
very specific world leaders and disruptive entrepreneurs in the
Integrated Approach niches in the wellness space who will go on to create a huge,
Samuel while defining wellbeing said, “A wise man once meaningful impact in people’s lives,” Samuel replied
said, wellness is the complete integration of body, mind while asked about his plan in the next 20 years.
and spirit – the realisation that everything we do, think,
feel and believe has an effect on our state of wellbeing. The income has its own exchange costs and each
I would define wellbeing as the integrated outcome program type has its own expense necessities. A
when different aspects of an individual’s life, be it their few companies have a lot of unhindered money and
purpose, passion, relationship, emotions, health and others have practically none. Due to the variety of
wealth are aligned.” hierarchical kinds in the area, dealing with these
different models can get extremely muddled.
Samuel, while talking about how his wellbeing journey field of wellness” While talking about the business models, he said,
started, said, “While I was doing everything under the “I want to enable entrepreneurs, visionaries and
sun to make that extra penny, I completely lost sight of industrial stalwarts to get into a 4-year subscription
who I wanted to be and my vision for myself and my life. model and provide them with the requisite platforms
Looking back, I could have lost several decades to the to create disruptive businesses in very specific nich-
vicious cycle of time and money. But, I was fortunate to es in the field of wellness.”
be picked by Antano & Harini to be a part of their team.
Since then on, the trajectory of my life shifted and my Creating New Paths
journey of personal evolution and impact began.” Samuel has great admiration for Hippocrates. On
“Presently, I have a new, well-integrated life that I asking why? He said, “Hippocrates, the father of
would have not have had otherwise. And now I have medicine, broke many superstitions and beliefs
an opportunity to create an impact in other people’s about the diseases and also introduced numerous
lives and their wellbeing,” Samuel mentioned during the medical terms universally used by physicians and
interaction. paved the way for modern medicine.”

He also emphasised his vision and mission. “Thousands Samuel further said that Hippocrates is the one who
of Excellence Installations have enabled wellness reminds him of how Antano and Harini, the creators
businesses worldwide to provide vastly improved, of Excellence Installation Technology, have solved
sustainable, speedy, effective and pain-free solutions many impossible situations in health, business,
to wellness outcomes across multiple niche areas,” he wellness, family, etc. and have also designed and
said. equipped hundreds of highly driven individuals
to become installation geniuses to create a huge
Samuel shed light on the struggles that he faced in impact in this world. They are thus paving the way
the past, from financial issues to relationships with the for incubating EIT-enabled, disruptive businesses, he
family, he faced it all. Samuel mentioned that at one added. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

70 SPOTLIGHT KARISHMA SHAH

BRING A LASTING
CHANGE

Many reasons I come from a family background where three generations have been dealing with a lifestyle
attracted disorder of diabetes. Growing up, I did not want my health to suffer and neglect it. I was
Karishma Shah, always cautious and curious to study food, nutrition, health and wellbeing,” says Karishma
ntegrative Health Shah, Integrative Health Nutritionist and Holistic Wellness Coach, Karishma Shah Nutrition
Nutritionist Consultancy as she traces back to the first steps that attracted her to wellbeing as part of lifestyle
and Holistic and a discipline.
Wellness Coach
at Karishma Shah started her journey for pursuing nutrition studies at The American College of Sports & Med-
Shah Nutrition icine and was certified as a clinical nutritionist. She then went on to pursue higher education in
Consultancy to integrative nutrition from IIN. She became a diabetes educator once she was certified. She worked
wellbeing, but her as an intern with two renowned and well-established diabetologists in Mumbai. “Throughout my
reason to stay is internship, I came across many patients and helped them with lifestyle, food modification and also
to empower and counselled them on issues with weight management, PCOD, thyroid and diabetes management. Af-
provide space to
people, making
conscious choices
and decisions
to bring about
a sustainable
lifestyle and
overall health

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BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40 71

ter completing two years of internship, I decided to start “The idea is children come from an innocent atmosphere and with the
my practice and I have set up my clinic in Juhu, Mumbai,” to break the times changing now, we will be witnessing more issues of
Shah recalls. monotony of mental health and the onset of diseases in near future.
giving a diet plan To help children understand what their strengths and
She says, “In my private practice, I began with individual and ask them to weaknesses are and how they work towards them over the
consultation, organising group consultation, educative follow it because years. I want to be in the forefront to create an education
talks, webinars, seminars and public speaking on the it’s bound to system in schools, colleges, institutions where the children
topics of health, nutrition, lifestyle, wellbeing and mental make them fall and youth belong around this realm.”
health. Along the way during this journey, I realised while apart through
interacting with my clients and who came from a space this. The more After the years of education and gaining insights from her
where they were dealing with lifestyle disorders, stress, sustainable way mentors, teachers, doctors and coaches, Shah created a
anxiety, weight issues - that food and nutrition is not just of doing this is blueprint on how she approaches somebody’s health in
one perspective to investigate. It’s also about their mental to work for long a six-fold technique. The business model is to be able to
health status and the atmosphere they are in. All these term benefits.” bring a balance on the overall wellbeing of an individual
factors drove my interest into the realm of mental health through the lens of spiritual, social, physical, intellectual,
and psychological aspect.” emotional and nutritional health. “We are not just giving
them a diet plan or looking at their BMI, we are diving deep
The Life Goals into the six aspects that contribute to the persona and
“I want to be able to guide, teach and educate people personality of an individual that can further enhance and
about themselves,” says Shah as she ponders on what she bring a lasting change,” she explains.
intends to continue pursuing. Self-awareness, cultivat-
ing emotional intelligence within people, helping them Setting Own Benchmarks
understand their body and their mind so they can make Among those who inspired her in the wellness space, Shah
informative and sensible decisions is what falls into her comments, “It’s a bit overwhelming to name someone
long-term plans. specifically in the wellbeing space because there are some
fantastic human beings out there in the world who are
She says, “The idea is to break the monotony of giving a contributing to health and wellness society through their
diet plan and ask them to follow it because it’s bound to own perspective. Every individual has their own originality,
make them fall apart through this. The more sustainable flavour and what they bring to the table for the people
way of doing this after working in this industry for five out there and it should be organic. We don’t have to be
years, I have realised and speaking through my experi- someone or imitate, we can be our own inspiration and our
ence, is to work for long term benefits. And they are seen own version.”
when we work with someone on a one to one basis and try
to understand, guide, coach and be able to remove their Wellbeing for Shah is “feed your divine”. She says, “I
blocks, help them understand themselves at a deeper strongly believe that when we nourish and nurture
level and to create a lasting change within themselves so ourselves at a deeper level that is when wellbeing begins.
they are motivated to continue for the rest of their lives.” Through lifestyle, nutrition and wellness coaching is what
we can achieve this. Eating well, exercising, creating new
Shift in Mindsets habits can be daunting and challenging sometimes but
Shah has set several goals for herself, which she believes my approach to wellbeing has always been to simplify the
will help her to accomplish at a larger magnitude. contradicting and overwhelming information surrounding
nutrition, exercise and wellness, prevalent in the industry
“I want to be able to educate the youth, the children of today.”
all age groups - the importance of things which are very
close to things that will affect their health in the future. Her mantra to healthy living does not take into account
Changing the education system and bringing the mindset the quantitative aspect of wellbeing rather investigates
where we can teach the children about what agriculture the body and mind works that are the magic pill because
is, crop cycles, what are the seasonal foods, what is the this can lead an individual to be at their happiest self and
ideal way of looking after themselves and guidance and healthiest self. She sums up, “I empower and provide space
support to impart mental health techniques like how to my clients to make conscious choices and decisions to
to navigate stress, anxiety, in the years that follow. As bring about a sustainable lifestyle and overall health.” 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

72 SPOTLIGHT KULDEEP KUMAR

PET-FRIENDLY NATURE
ESCAPES TO HELP YOU
HIT RESET

Kuldeep Kumar,Founder,
Namastay Homes talks
about how the rural boutique
homestay away from the city
in Varanasi motivates people
to practice living with animals
for a mental health benefit
and increase their happiness.
Months of living indoors
doesn’t sit well with most
of us, especially in these
Corona times. To cope with
homesickness, people are
finding new ways to go
outside, work from different
places and even staying for
months at places close to
nature to detox their body
and souls. Kumar saw this
business opportunity even
before the Covid-19 pandemic
and started working on the
idea in early 2018. Within two
years, he launched Namastay
Homes in Varanasi.

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

73BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

effective healing method. I want to spread happiness,
good mental wellbeing and an inclusive quality while living
with pets.”

Photographs by Indiapicturebudget Just after two weeks of the launch of Namastay Homes,
the Government of India imposed the first lockdown in the
S pread across six acres, Namastay Homes is country. “I felt stress and mental agony seeing my travel
a rural boutique homestay away from the business and homestay businesses suffer due to Covid.
city in Varanasi where people can come I realised what I had created was giving more physical
close to a village environment, breathe in relaxation and benefits but good mental health was also
fresh air, eat organic farm food, spend time playing and required to handle the situation post-Covid due to losses
being with cows and goats, read books, engage in outdoor on all fronts, not only to self but so many people around
activities and rejuvenate themselves. the world,” Kumar mentioned.

Primarily hailing from Jharkhand, Kumar is an alumnus of “I want to “I started inviting guests from the city who were looking
the Institute of Management, Banaras Hindu University have chain of for an escape post the first lockdown and wanted to give
and IHM Pusa, New Delhi. He also runs a travel firm, Walks quality time to their families in a natural environment. I
of Varanasi. Apart from this, he is also an executive mem- pet-friendly along with my team started encouraging guests to look
ber of National Innovation & Start-Up Policy & Institution’s homestays at more inclusive living for better mental health and
Innovation Council by Ministry of Education for Banaras experience pet therapy. This idea was liked and accepted
Hindu University. through by many guests, with our posts related to puppies, calves,
which I could village livestock. There was a paradigm shift, I started
Talking about his journey, Kumar expressed, “My wellbeing getting calls from long stayers, pet lovers and local guests
journey started with seeing myself and other people encourage who wanted to send their elderly parents to relax and de-
around suffering from Covid and personal losses. Then living with pets. tox and play with our pets. We made ourselves a 100 per
one day I met a few puppies and fell in love with them. I cent pet-friendly place and now instead of promoting our
felt positivity and relaxation with them around and that’s People who pool and lounges which we had created before Covid, we
when I decided to encourage people to feel and experi- have gone focused on takers who were coming to us for good mental
ence pet therapy.” health. People were booking our place for happiness,
quality living, companionship and to rediscover them-
Before becoming an entrepreneur, Kumar had worked for selves during the period of Covid fear,” he added.
eight years in the hotel industry and seven years in Train-
ing & Development. Later on, he decided to quit the job Being Inclusive
as the entrepreneurial bug was making him restless and Kumar and his family also got Covid and he chose to
merely spreadsheets were not giving him the excitement stay alone in the premises of his homestay with his pets.
he was looking for in life. “There was not a single day of negativity and I recovered
very quickly,” he said.
Lastly, he quit a job based in Goa in a reputed home appli- through trauma
ances organisation. In year 2017, Kumar came to Varanasi or stress could Talking about his business model, Kumar maintained, “My
and started an experiential travel firm. Moving ahead, he experience a business of Namastay Homes is a homestay offering pure
decided to open a rural boutique homestay away from the non-medicinal organic food. It is located away from the city in a natural
city in Varanasi. set up with less access to technology and gadgets, where
people can come close to nature, live with pets in the
For The Pet but effective premises and enjoy good mental and physical health
Speaking about his vision, Kumar said, “I want to have healing when they return.
chain of pet-friendly homestays through which I could en-
courage living with pets. People who have gone through method” “Namastay Homes operates with sustainable and inclu-
trauma or stress could experience a non-medicinal but sive practices. It hires and trains local manpower, sources
most things from local vendors, takes care of local ani-
mals living around and motivates people to practice living
with animals for a mental health benefit and increase
their happiness,” he added. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

74 SPOTLIGHT LOVNEET BATRA

TASAUPKPSITRNAOGIANTCAHHBELE

Lovneet
Batra believes
nutrition can be
both delicious
and doable.
The official
nutritionist for
the elite athletes
at the 2014
Commonwealth
Games and
Asian Games
and the author
of the book
50 Desi Super
Drinks, speaks
to BW Wellbeing
World on what
drives her.

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75BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

N ew Delhi-based clinical nutritionist and “A nutrition Batra launched her practice with a completely different
the author of the book 50 Desi Super philosophy approach, one which has helped hundreds of patients
Drinks, Lovneet Batra, the force be- that centres and which continues to date. Her nutrition philosophy
hind Nutrition by Lovneet, Focusses on around food centres around food that heals and helps, with a focus
therapeutic nutrition, indigenous produce and wellness that heals and on native ingredients and a sound understanding of
practices. Her aim is to help individuals reverse disease helps, with a Ayurvedic principles. 
and regain their health through food. Being one of New focus on native
Delhi’s most sought-after nutritionists, she looks at ingredients A medical report can change a person’s life and as a
food, fitness and health as a journey, with a sustain- and a sound nutritionist, Batra works to keep her patients happy and
able, no-deprivation approach that brings her clients understanding healthy despite this. Food has the power to heal. Poor
closer to their goals — and results in lasting change.  A of Ayurvedic eating habits in childhood and different stages of adult-
nutritionist who believes good food and good health are principles”  hood can have detrimental effects later, as metabolic
best buddies, she begins her day with a paneer paratha down and the body changes with age. When people
for breakfast as it keeps her happy, full and energised choose the right foods early on, they can stay healthy
for the rest of the day. After more than 10 years of ex- and even prevent the onset of lifestyle disorders. And,
perience, she became the nutrition expert on The Men’s if a patient is diagnosed with a disease or disorder, the
Health and Women’s Health Show for India Today TV. right foods can improve the effectiveness of their course
of treatment. 
From Pre-Med to Clinical Nutritionist 
Becoming a nutritionist wasn’t her initial intention. Her Sustainable vs Paper Perfect
plan was to study medicine and she chose nutrition and Batra doesn’t prescribe paper-perfect diets, but sus-
dietetics as her pre-med major at Michigan State Univer- tainable plans that will nourish and keep satiety levels in
sity. At around the same time, a relative back home had check. Her diets push people towards better health and
a brush with disease. While the patient was receiving the help them overcome illness, disease and lifestyle disor-
right medical care, there was no proper nutritional guid- ders, with optimum nutrition and no deprivation. 
ance or advice which resulted in long-term dependence
on medication, which seemed unnecessary and unhealthy. Each patient comes with specific concerns and bio-indi-
viduality — and there can be no one-size-fits-all solution
As she began working with medical practitioners on a when it comes to nutrition. As a general rule of thumb, it’s
closer level during her time at university, she came to best to nutrient-dense whole foods as opposed to pro-
learn the power of nutrition and how food could be used cessed food — but eating the right combination of foods
to treat and beat the disease. She experienced how food that work best for a patient is what will keep them healthy
and nutrition had the power to support, prevent and man- and disease-free in the long run. 
age illness, improve the efficacy of a course of treatment
or medication and even get a patient off medication Through her namesake practice, Batra and her team offer
completely.  in-person and online consultations and treat patients
using weekly diet charts, supplements and regular
After experiencing the effectiveness of food-as-medicine, counselling sessions. NBL specialises in women’s health,
Batra chose to pursue nutrition as a way to use food to with programmes that cater to fertility, PCOS and PCOD,
prevent illness and achieve life-long happiness and good pregnancy nutrition, postnatal nutrition, lactation and
health and set up her practice when she returned to India more. She is also a senior consultant, at Fortis, for wom-
in the 2010s. en’s health. 

A Holistic Approach for Lasting Good Health  At her company, health is a journey and food is not the
When she started out as a nutritionist a decade ago, enemy. It’s the source for change, starting with small
the landscape was different and what was expected eating changes for an improved quality of life. “We study
of a nutritionist was different as well. Weight loss, each patient’s requirements, goals and pre-existing health
management and how to trim the fat were the key conditions to create plans that bring results, nourish and
expectations from a majority of the population. The satisfy. No fads. No starvation. No shortcuts. Just a focus
focus was on food for ‘fitness’ and being ‘fit’ was on the right food combinations to make healthy living sim-
equated with being thin or skinny. ple, doable and delicious,” Batra concludes. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

76 INTERVIEW MEHAKDEEP SINGH

EVERY FITNESS
JOURNEY IS DIFFERENT

What attracted you to the wellbeing industry in the

first place?
I was obese since childhood. Hiding from public places
and the camera was part of my day-to-day routine.
As such, I did not have many social circles. Most of the
friends I made had the same problem. My self-confidence
declined as I reached my teenage years and my aware-
ness of self, increased. I decided to do something about it.
The gym seemed like the only option back then. In 2003,
I just joined the gym with one of my friends – Sahil. We
used to spend more than two hours every day. We both
were above 100 kg and as such, it felt like we have a long
road ahead.

We got some results initially and we were happy about
it. We wanted to achieve more and our coach introduced
us to some weight loss supplements. We went for it as we
really wanted to change things for good. Remember, we
were still in college at that time.

We got some good results and gained a lot of confidence.
Eventually, we started going out and the gym took a
backseat. All of my weight came back. I was shocked and
sad.

Sustainable fitness is about making Then onwards, the gym became a part of my routine till
lifestyle changes, advises Mehakdeep 2014, when I met with an accident. The gym was no longer
Singh, Co Founder, Fitelo in this an option. That is when I went for a master’s in nutrition.
conversation with BW Wellbeing World, From the concepts I learned, I lost 60 kg and I have been
where he shares his journey and what lies able to maintain most of it to date. I have learned a lot
ahead for him. Edited Excerpts about sustainable fitness in the last seven years and now
I want to help others to achieve their fitness goals via
Fitelo.

How do you make the company sustainable at the
moment?
We have a subscription-based model. Our plans vary from
Rs 3000, monthly for weight management cases, to Rs
50,000, which is an annual plan for disease management
cases. As soon as a customer purchases a plan, a person-

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77BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

Photographs by Indiapicturebudget

al dietitian or a nutritionist is aligned with them. The entire Getting well earlier and my childhood would have been happier. Unlike
process is online. The Fitelo app and platform allows our and staying fit other wellness coaches that target specific age groups,
dietitians to manage thousands of people while providing Joe’s programs cover everyone from a child to the elderly.
a high level of customisation and personal experience.
seems like a How do you define wellbeing?
Fitelo was born from your personal experience. complicated Wellbeing is not being in the ideal BMI range or having six-
What do you see as the driving factors for it now? process. But it is pack abs. Wellbeing is about feeling healthy physically,
Sustainable fitness is about making lifestyle changes. It not. It starts with mentally and emotionally. It means staying away from
is about habit-building. Every fitness journey is different. awareness. If disease. It means having a strong internal system that
The market is flooded with misinformation. I want to edu- we can increase includes a strong metabolism and immunity.
cate people and help them avoid falling into fads or traps. our awareness
At Fitelo, we are on a mission to help 10 million people of what matters, Even if you are a bit off from your ideal BMI and don’t
get better in the next five years and this drives us to push have a beach body, you can still be healthy. If your body’s
forward. Our vision is to become a household brand when vital functions are working well, if you feel energetic and
it comes to fitness. don’t get tired easily, if you are generally happy in life, you
are well.
Years from now, I see myself contributing to making
human lives have high expectancy, be disease-free and we can start The media portrays our need of having a body that is
happy. I want to create a platform that will help solve getting well beautiful on the outside. Covid has changed that. People
world problems such as hunger, obesity and lifestyle dis- realise, having a beautiful inside is just as important.
eases. I want to keep contributing to making human lives today. While in some cases, supplementation is required, gen-
healthy even if we reside on a new planet. erally, our body is made of natural foods. It is made to do
normal household chores and not get tired. It is made to
Is there anyone in the wellbeing space that inspires socialise and connect with others.
you?
Joe Wicks, a.k.a The Body Coach. The Fitness industry is a In the modern world, all of this is changing. Hence, people
confusing world out there. He simplifies fitness concepts are not well today. They are seeing deficiencies, diseases,
and makes it fun. His understanding of social media and stress and lethargy. Getting well and staying fit seems like
how to get users to pay attention to his content inspires a complicated process. But it is not. It starts with aware-
me. His concept of starting early in life is what everyone ness. If we can increase our awareness of what matters,
should practice. I started my fitness journey in my teens. we can start getting well today. You don’t need any crash
After following him, I realised it could have started much diets, rigorous gym, supplements or medicines to get fit. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

78 INTERVIEW MOUMITA NANDY

‘MY MISSION IS TO
DE-STIGMATISE
MENTAL HEALTH’

How did your wellbeing journey start and what

does it mean to you?
Mental health issues have been a silent battle for many
because of the whole stigma around it and also due to
the immense fear of labeling, which has often discour-
aged people to share their emotions, thoughts and
feelings. Looking towards the stigma that has always
been associated with mental health, made me enter the
field and since then I have never looked back. Working
as a mental health practitioner has been my calling and
my passion made me associate with places like Cancer
Institute, Chennai and Tata Cancer Institute, Kolkata. I
genuinely feel that awareness is the gateway to under-
standing and self-actualisation and as people realise
that mental wellbeing would be more accessible and
proliferative.

Photographs by Ritesh Sharma What are your vision and mission?
My forte is providing psychological aid in a clinical setup.
Moumita Nandy,ClinicalPsychologist, I take every opportunity to educate people and encour-
Evolve With Us Resources & Solutions age them to share their struggles with mental illness.
talks about a wide range of topics Since most of our population is struggling with mental
including mental illness, the stigma illness, the simple act of showing affection can make
related to it and how she is contributing their day and also remind others of something so easily
to promote mental health and wellbeing forgotten: the humanity of those who are suffering. Most
for all. people who live with mental illness have, at some point,
been blamed for their condition. They have been called
names. Their symptoms have been referred to as ‘a
phase’ or something they can control ‘if they only tried.’
They have been illegally discriminated against, with no
justice. This is the unwieldy power that stigma holds.
Stigma causes people to feel ashamed for something
that is out of their control. Worst of all, stigma prevents
people from seeking the help they need. Stigma is an
unacceptable addition to their pain and their already
heavy burden. And while stigma has reduced in recent

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79BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

Photographs by Indiapicturebudget

years, the pace of progress has not been quick enough. “The concept of the market. Many industry experts also believe that the
My mission is to destigmatise mental health and make mental health demand for such service is only going to increase given
people understand that they are not different and there the uncertainty caused due to Covid-19 and the rise
is nothing to be ashamed of and it’s their right to dispose doesn’t end with in anxiety-related disorders, depression, work-related
of their pain and harbor positive thoughts and feelings diagnosis and stress, is only going to increase and the need for profes-
about themselves. sional service becomes critical.

Where do you see yourself 20 years from now? recovery. It’s While the pandemic has come as a blessing in disguise
There has always been a judgment about how people feel vital to focus on for the mental health space, it has removed the social
since feelings and emotions have always been abstract. It maintenance as stigma and medium from the equation — you don’t have
pains me to see that the evolution of mental care is still at well. We all have to physically go somewhere to get therapy done, every-
a very nascent stage. All it needs is compassion and toler- certain levels of thing can happen with a click of a button. For decades,
ance towards each other. How often do we ask the person anxiety within us the mental wellness space was associated only with
beside us, ‘How are you feeling today?’ Understanding is and to manage NGOs and ‘not for profits.’ This is slowly changing now as
no understatement. But how do we do it if people are still private players, investors are entering into this space,
not aware of their feelings, how do we make someone else but there’s still a long way to go, as the industry is still in
talk about it? This thought has been traveling in my mind the nascent stages in the country.
for a long time and all I ever wanted was to simplify the
whole concept of awareness and that’s how the mental those levels, we What is your definition of wellbeing?
health app that I am currently working on came to my need to focus For me, the concept of mental health doesn’t end with
mind. Evolve is the earliest word of existence and atypical on the source diagnosis and recovery. It’s vital to focus on mainte-
of our natural selection. We survived and outsmarted the nance as well. We all have certain levels of anxiety within
Neanderthals only with respect to our mental capacity, rather than the us and to manage those levels, we need to focus on the
then why not get more aware of it. With this vision I see trigger” source rather than the trigger. So when we ask a loved
myself creating a global platform wherein people are one what they’re feeling, people will be more accepting
more aware of themselves, their feelings and can talk towards their mental health and that of others. My goal
freely about their mental health and own it with pride. is to make mental health more accessible. I am someone
who would like to address the issues not only in a symp-
Tell us about your business model. tomatic manner but focus on the asymptomatic details.
Mental health and wellness startups are not only capi- Uncovering the underlying beliefs and emotions within
talising on the opportunity by intervening when people humans is important and my way of working includes a
most need their help but also have found revenue and holistic approach to betterment. 
user growth to establish themselves as a presence in

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

80 SPOTLIGHT NABHIT KAPUR

GROWING THE
WELLBEING SCALE

Photographs by Ritesh Sharma Nabhit Kapurisa
crusader of mental
peace who has
managed to accomplish
it with flying colours. The
gentleman with a golden
heart has transformed
an infinite number of
lives domestically and
even internationally. An
author, psycho-preneur,
TEDx Speaker and
ambassador of mental
health and peace, he is
the jack of all trades.

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BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40 81

O ver the years, Kapur has added quite a Over the years, Photographs by Indiapicturebudget
few feathers on his cap. In 2018, he was Kapur has added
honoured with the Ghana Peace Award envoys. He was the first-ever person in New Delhi to
by the Ministry of Interior. In 2019, he quite a few initiate this kind of a concept. In 2021, when Afghan-
added another accolade with the APJ Abdul Kalam Award feathers on his istan was in dire straits, he chose not to become a
by India's Tamil Nadu government. Further, in 2020, he cap. In 2018, he mere spectator instead believed in taking the initiative
was honoured as Colonel Highest civilian honour by the was honoured for the improvement. After coming across the whole
Government/Governor of Kentucky State, USA. In 2021, with the Ghana scenario, he called the people from Afghanistan and
he was recognised by the international association of Peace Award by resided in India alone and assured them that they
world peace advocates UN ECOSOC as the Peace am- the Ministry of were not alone. As the Peacful Mind Foundation, he
bassador and a peace fellow. Interior. In 2019, guaranteed psychological aid and special counselling
he added another to Afghans. He also shared various helplines to make
Widening the Impact accolade with the their lives less chaotic, which is indeed another heart-
The Peacfulmind Foundation harks back to 2016, the APJ Abdul Kalam warming step.
core objective was to broaden the scale of mental Award by India’s
wellbeing all over the world. The organisation is Kapur has been an out-of-the-box thinker. To erad-
registered with UN Global Compact. It encapsulates Tamil Nadu icate the issues related to mental health he came up
various initiatives which comprise World Leaders for government. with a unique initiative. The program aimed to moti-
Mental Health, Peacfulmind Covid-19 Envoys, Global Further, in 2020, vate youth, adults and peers to speak and talk about
Youth Mental Health Forum and PMF Free Stress he was honoured the taboo and treat it just like other issues in society.
Management Centre among others.
as Colonel On May 1, 2020, he came forward with another initia-
His endeavour has been to continually spread the knowl- Highest civilian tive which was Peacful Mind Mentors. The PMF Mentors
edge around psycho-social wellbeing among society and were entrusted with driving the conversation regarding
help children opt for crucial concepts such as psychol- honour by the a healthy state of mind with listeners who will then
ogy, abnormal psychology, psycho diagnostics and so Government/ step into a secure future. The Peacful Mind Mentors
on. Another arena that he has always been a part of is come from different backgrounds so that every person
to psycho-educate people to help them understand the Governor of can acquire a sense of belonging. In short, he accu-
real and actual perceived cause of a current ailment and Kentucky mulated world leaders and made them speak out loud
has a solid ethical code. about the need for reforms in mental health policies as
State, USA. In it is the need of the hour.
In 2018, Kapur introduced a global platform, Youth 2021, he was
Forum. The focus of the platform was to garner ‘Better recognised by Further, with the WLMH initiative, Kapur, the President
Mindscapes for Better Tomorrow’. The core objectives the international of the foundation initiated policy change in the space
of the forum have always revolved around youth mental association of of mental health, not only within the domestic bound-
wellbeing. As the world has completely inclined towards world peace aries but even across the global ones. This initiative
the digital era, the forum platform’s availability is both was to draw people’s attention and create a platform
online and offline. advocates for world leaders to present coherent arguments in
UN ECOSOC favour of mental health reforms. 
In 2019, on World Health Day, Peacfulmind Foundation as the Peace
collaborated with the National Municipal Corporation of ambassador and
Delhi and launched a Stress Management Centre, which a peace fellow.
aimed to assist the workforce and government officials
with stress-free work. Peacfulmind Foundation has ca-
tered to more than 34,000 employees of the Municipal
Corporation as well as the Income Tax Department.

Extending a Helping Hand
During the pandemic, Kapur successfully trained approx-
imately 154 volunteers who were named PMF Covid-19

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

82 SPOTLIGHT NAKSHI SATRA

Wellbeing

CREATING Aisthepower

to navigate

SAFE SPACEthrough

emotional

TOWARDShealthandfind

what is best for

MENTAL HEALTHyourmind,body
and energy to

align with the
vision of your ental health has been looked at with a negative connotation, however, in my decade

long experience, it has been different. Mental health does not need to be a problem-

NaokwsnhliifSea, staraid, M atic thing, said Satra, in an exclusive interaction with BW Wellbeing magazine.
Describing the definition of wellbeing, Satra said, “It is the power to navigate
Founder, Life through emotional health and find what best suits your mind, body and energy to align with the vision
& Business of your own life, live a fulfilled life with emotional closure and stay in tune with your inner happiness.”

– Wellness Satra who is also the Founder of Nakshi S, Principal Life and Business Strategist said that she founded
Strategist, In:ha In:ha Wellness in April 2013 with a fresh, new age, non-judgmental approach, where the main focus is
on mental awareness, cleansing, emotional closures and physical healing. She said that by putting all
Wellness. these things together, she wanted to give mental health an organic, palatable, experiential and overall
holistic approach to create a safe space and normalise change.

Satra talked about how she started her journey and travelled to different regions or areas to study and
experience wellness. She has been certified as a Theta Healing Instructor, Practitioner of courses in
NLP, Hypnotherapy, Joyous Body Protocol, Access Bars, Jung Shim counselling, the list goes on.

“My personal journey began at a very young age, grappling with mental health conditions from school
times, not finding sufficient help, finding a gap in the system and then eventually losing my mother to
an incurable form of cancer, which led me to switch careers from finance to mental health. From this
gap what I identified, was how In:ha was born,” said Satra.

The recent developments around the globe have pushed people into depression and many of them are
dealing with anxiety and emotional issues. In countries like India, children and young people could feel
the impact of ongoing Covid-19 on their mental health and wellbeing for many years to come, UNICEF
warned in its flagship report launched in October this year.

Hence, this is where organisations like In:ha take centre stage and can help people to tackle these
sensitive issues. Satra while talking about the vision and mission of her company said, “Our vision at
In:ha is to become the leading mind-tech brand for holistic and mental health, striving for assured
results in the wellness industry.”

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83BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

en by 100 team members moving towards introducing
health-tech and mind-tech integrations in our daily
life to keep all our mind, body and energy vitals intact,”
Satra shared.

I want to make a universal impact by empowering
clients to become emotionally independent instead of
being prisoners to their mind’s limitations due to the
gaps between the conscious and the subconscious
mind, she mentioned. I also want to introduce and
get approvals for the concept of mental health and
emotional wellness as a part of school curriculums as
a part of the growing subconscious in the early years
of life would truly allow mental health to normalise, she
added.

She described how she has a small yet effective team of “In the next Apart from the work for the people, she also talked
10 people, trained in-house. She also mentioned, “We 20 years from about the business model that has become extremely
are on our way to becoming a workforce of an exclu- now, I see my important for organisation like In:ha Wellness, as this
sive 100 team members in the next two years. We have organisation is the only way they can sustain themselves in this
worked with over 3,000 independent clients, giving 100 money dominated era. There is a need to look through
per cent and more results.” being driven the lens of their business model, like what they do and
by 100 team how their work is supported.
Since her certification as a Healing Practitioner and Instruc-
tor was completed a decade earlier, Satra has established members “With a decade long experience, I have built a struc-
herself as a wellness expert. She has successfully guided and moving towards tured certified training module that addresses and
advised several clients and helped them achieve their desired equips the team, beyond the gaps that exist in the
potential and success. introducing mental health field. Currently, we have set up a robust
health-tech system to screen applicants who would like to begin
The coming times are very crucial for people, especially and mind-tech their career in the mental health space with a few
in modern India where the level of competition in almost integrations basic prerequisites and train them to build a larger
every field is rising day by day. All these things can in our daily life team worldwide offering sessions with a combination
definitely lead to stress whether it’s office work, academ- to keep all our of online and offline, to reach 100 team members,” she
ic stress or your family. Satra said that she wants to mind, body and said.
commit herself to providing emotional support to people energy vitals
in the next 20 years from now. Satra also mentioned that the team will constantly
intact” get upgraded with new tools and techniques in the
“I see myself committed to emotional wellness growth industry and so will we evolve with methodology in
by aiming for a disease-free and a debt-free world as our practice, keeping up with the constantly changing
a by-product of our services. Building a structured and times. While on the other hand we have experiential
professional infrastructure for mental health, creating group sessions, workshops, courses, retreats and are
safe zones through tie-ups with destination properties working with the corporate wellness segment, she
for retreats worldwide, I see my organisation being driv- mentioned. “It would allow people to find a structured
and professional way to approach, which can track
progress, while having an integrative and a comple-
mentary approach with the medical or conventional
world,” she added. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

84 SPOTLIGHT NMAMI AGARWAL

EAT TO LIVE, NOT
LIVE TO EAT

The recent surveys show
that millennials are putting
health and wellness on the
priority list. The healthy
lifestyle has increased
more dramatically and
some credit goes to social
media as well.
Nmami Agarwal, Founder
& CEO, Nmami Life has
paved a whole new way
for a healthy lifestyle by
bringing Nmami Life into
existence.

N mami Agarwal is the Founder & CEO of Nma-
mi Life. She completed her specialisation
in Nutrition and Dietetics from Symbiosis
Institute of Health Sciences. She also gained
hands-on experience from multispecialty
hospitals like Max and Medanta and later gained more
than two years of experience in clinical nutrition.

Founded in 2016, Nmami Life is a health and wellness
organisation offering lifestyle management solutions
through holistic nutrition health, information, events,
seminars and social media activities or engagements. The
company is based out of New Delhi.

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

85BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

Photographs by Indiapicturebudget making your life a healthy one. I aim to enrich people's
lives with the right dose of nutrition and to help them
build a healthy relationship with food. Instead of strin-
gent do’s and don’ts that make dieting akin to a prison
sentence, I suggest simple lifestyle modifications and
nutritional strategies. I advise on customised diet plans
that work best based on a person’s lifestyle, current
fitness levels and long-term goals.

Based out from a small-town in Jammu, Agarwal started “Health is the “My business model is to nurture my clients by changing
her journey with small stepping stones of internship in real wealth and their lifestyle to a healthier one and keeping them
known hospitals and after gaining two years of hands-on investing in your thoroughly updated on nutritional facts and changing
experience as a dietician, she finally started her clinic good health for a their perception about nutrition and food. Enlightening
Nmami Life in 2016. Later on, she shifted from Jammu to my clients about nutrition is what I aim for. Shortcuts
the capital of India. and quick fixes are myths and you can't lose 10 kgs in
a month, this is a myth I want to bust, such quick fixes
Sharing her vision, Agarwal said, “Health is the real wealth better tomorrow take a toll on your body,” she explained.
and investing in your good health for a better tomorrow is is my vision
my vision and motto. Enlightening people, busting myths and motto. When asked about her definition of wellbeing, she
around diets and healthy eating is what I am for. Unless reaffirmed, “For me, wellbeing starts with good nutrition.
your nutrition is right, nothing is going to come easy.” Enlightening Nutrition is important for both physical and psycholog-
people, busting ical health, social wellbeing, community spirit, cultural
“My mission is to educate my clients on nutrition and bust and behavioral education, sustainable development,
any myths around food they have. Moreover I want to myths around quality of life and life management skills. Not only that
eradicate fad diets that have become the trend now like, diets and but it plays a big role in the mental health of a person,
no-carb diet, keto diets, etc. which are not sustainable the food-mood connection, where people who don’t
options for long-term benefits, this is why I say one should healthy eating have a healthy diet report symptoms of depression and
eat today for tomorrow,” she added. mental health issues. Some nutrients in good health are
also connected to emotional wellbeing.”
Agarwal believes in diet as a part of one’s entire lifestyle is what I am for.
and not just one attribute that can be measured through Unless your Sharing her long term goals, Agarwal maintained,
a meager weighing scale. Ever since the commencement “Having tie-ups with various NGOs and MNCs, I wish
of Nmami Life, she has been advising customised diet nutrition is right, to create a healthy environment worldwide. In these
plans based on a person’s lifestyle, medical history, health nothing is going 20 years, I wish to see all the clients living a healthy
goals and fitness levels. and nourishing lifestyle. I certainly hope to remove the
to come easy” fad trends from society and help them make the right
Nmami is a Sanskrit term which means ‘welcome’. The choices today, for a bright and healthy tomorrow! I don’t
brand believes in welcoming a healthy and happy lifestyle particularly work in this profession for money or fame
through sustainable changes. The tagline of Nmami Life but for the smile that is left after I help my client - that
is ‘Eat Today For Tomorrow’, which means that the food keeps me motivated in the long term.”
has a therapeutic power to decide the outcome of health
in the coming future. The company offers a multitude of Lastly, Agarwal also shared that she admires her mother
services both from B2B and B2C segments. The services the most as she not only encouraged her to follow her
range from personalised diet plans to content, curating dreams but also helped her to spread her wings. “Her
and corporate collaborations. strong and positive attitude inspires and motivates to
grow through all the hurdles of life. Also, it’s her uncon-
Talking about business model, Agarwal expressed, I follow ditional love and support which has only motivated me
the motto with the thought of "one must eat to live, not to come all this way. She is the one who nurtured me
live to eat," the basic but most important fundamentals of throughout my life and taught me the importance of
nutrition,” she added. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

86 INTERVIEW NOOR ARORA

SELWFA-CYAORFELISIFAE

In practice, self- Photographs by Ritesh Sharma
care involves
respecting What are some of the goals that drive you forward?
body, mind, My aim is to live a healthy happy life. Professionally my aim for First Water in the short term is to
environment become more user-centric and preferably integrate the customer experience in every step of their
and the society journey with us. In the next couple of years, that looks like getting more involved with them online
one lives in and both on social media and on our website. Customer service to us is an essential part of any business
being conscious and feedback from them is of the utmost importance.
about the
choices they
make, says
Noor Arora,
Co Founder,
First Water
Solutions, in this
conversation
with BW
Wellbeing
World. Edited
Excerpts:

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87BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

With higher interaction between us and our clients, We also plan to listen to and incorporate feedback to this end. We
something that we lost by going online compared to to increase our also pride ourselves in our high standards of green
the level pre-Covid times, we endeavour to make their and clean practices. Our products are certified
experience easier, more detailed, fulfilling and effective. reach in India organic, not just our ingredients.
We also plan to increase our reach in India and abroad. and abroad. In
In the long run, my vision for First Water is to turn it the long run, my At the moment, we are based almost entirely online,
into a healthy sustainable living brand that addresses vision for First retailing from our website and many third-party
various aspects of a person’s life, making it easier for Water is to turn platforms. We are also available worldwide through
them to practice self-care. Our mission is to make self- it into a healthy shipping partners as well as through export.
care easier and accessible while keeping sustainability
in mind. sustainable There is much that keeps you busy at the mo-
living brand ment but what attracted you to this sector in
Tell us about your revenue model. that addresses the first place?
We at First Water Solutions make high quality, 100 per various aspects My wellbeing journey started before I knew what
cent natural personal care products and know that na- of a person’s that meant. As a child, I spent a significant amount
ture provides the best solutions for all of one’s personal life, making it of time with my great grandmother who was a
care needs. We are 100 per cent natural, plant-based easier for them naturopath and it was with her, that I first learnt the
and gluten-free. All our ingredients are hand-picked to practice basics of self-care. To me, self-care is a way of life.
to ensure premium quality and are grown from non- In practice, it involves respecting your body, mind,
GMO seeds. We are also completely free of artificial selfcare. environment and the society you live in and being
chemicals, silicones, parabens, PEG, formaldehyde, conscious about the choices you make. It is an ex-
alcohol, petrochemicals and animal products, testing tremely personal practice that and though has some
and compliance with fair trade regulations. We believe basic methods that most people would collectively
in the preservation of our evergreen forests and don’t know, in actuality, it has to be tailored to someone’s
use palm oil in our products. personal needs.

Our formulas are derived from both ancient reme- Two decades from now, where will we see
dies and modern research and we believe in the triple
bottom line of economy (we believe in high quality at you…
low prices), ecology (we are clinically tested, certified That is a long time! I would hope to be happy,
organic and are safe for the environment) and ergo- healthy and successful but in my experience so far,
nomics (all our products are dermatologically tested life and work take unexpected turns. Going down an
and designed for skin types). avenue that you think will take you to your desired
goal can often lead to an entirely different outcome.
With a total of 216 products spanning skincare, hair- This is a process that I enjoy immensely. I think it
care, body care, lip care, fragrances, raw ingredients helps me grow. Also, with the rapid rate of advance-
and DIY sets, First Water offers a wide variety of solu- ment in technology, imagining what I would like to
tions for any personal care need. We utilise reusable do then would be a little redundant. The only thing
packaging. All our bottles and jars can be reused in I can say conclusively is that 20 years from now I
your house. To encourage minimal waste, we also give see myself still doing things that I love and looking
incentives to customers to return the bottles and jars to for inspiration that helps me achieve my goals and
us for recycling. We offer a 5 per cent discount on the missions.
return of our three empty packages. On the return of
five empty packs, we send you a free product. Is there anyone who is your favourite person in

We are also a vegan brand. We give part of our sales the wellbeing space?
to feeding street dogs and other animals in India. Our This is a tough one. Honestly given the last year and
USP at First Water is that we strive to put our customers a half that we have all had, I’m going to have to say
first and are willing to put in the time and energy to help the world’s frontline workers and those working in
them achieve their personal care goals. We formulate rehabilitation and mental health. There are so many
and curate with this goal in mind and are always happy unsung heroes that have done so much for other
people’s wellbeing and the rest of us in this field can
only hope to emulate them. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

88 SPOTLIGHT PALLAV BIHANI

OBFRBOOLEDMSIFTIYT TO

Pallav Bihaniisa
self-driven individual
who has made his life
a mission to make
health and fitness an
accessible lifestyle
choice to millions
across India. He is the
founder of Boldfit and
has been a passionate
entrepreneur who
has used his personal
experience of dealing
with obesity as an
example to drive his
business. In a chat with
BW Wellbeing World,
Bihani speaks about
his not so smooth
journey of wellbeing.

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For one who was a target of bullies and was made the “We need to He feels that being responsible citizens is also a
butt of many jokes because he was obese, start taking care very essential element of wellbeing in the broader
Bihani has come a long way as now he is sense. He urged, “We need to start taking care of
looked upon as a visionary and an ideal for of our bodies, our bodies, of our mental health. But we must also
all young budding entrepreneurs. While of our mental care for our surroundings and the environment for
talking about his journey, he said, “I took it upon instance, whereby we are also providing the future
myself to become a healthier person and thus started health. But generations with a conducive environment for the
my sojourn with fitness. I realised how important we must also flourishing of their wellbeing.”
physical health and mental health is, however, this
also made me realise how inaccessible it is currently care for our Bihani’s Boldfit revolves around its customers. Their
in India.” surroundings business model firstly, allows them to have a direct
link with customers whereby the market availability
He realised the cost at which such a turnaround and the of their products and services is more pronounced
came and knew that not everyone would be able to environment and secondly, it eliminates the middlemen whereby
benefit from the abundant virtues of inculcating a for instance, the products and services become more affordable
healthy lifestyle. He persevered and turned his life whereby we are whilst keeping control over its quality and standards
around with the help of health and fitness. He made also providing firmly within their control. They directly interact
a decision then, to lead a healthy lifestyle not just and sell to the customers through their company’s
as a passing thought, but something that every the future website and have a robust partnership with some of
individual could do. Now, to the people who work for generations the best logistics partners in India.
him, he is an inspiration and a tremendous mentor. with a conducive
His contemporaries and subordinates all admire his environment for Presently, Bihani is at the helm of a flourishing
passion for the community. the flourishing of health and fitness e-commerce outfit that is
their wellbeing” growing exponentially. He believes in a society
A testament to his business acumen is his assessment that is happy and healthy and where a healthy
of latent potential in the underdeveloped health and mental and physical existence is ever-present.
fitness market in India and the subsequent meteoric He consciously tries to innovate and break
rise of Boldfit. contemporary barriers to accessing health and
fitness.
Speaking about his vision and mission, he said, “My
vision is to standardise health and fitness products to Except for Bihani’s experience, another driving
make them more affordable and accessible whilst not force behind his inspiration is, Virat Kohli. The
compromising on the quality and matching the best phase of the transition of Bihani was in sync with
brands available. I want to cater to each household in the cricketer. He said, “Moreover, Virat is a great
India.” champion for the cause of mental health and its
ever-increasing importance. Being a role model for
Further adding to his statement, he said, “Health and so many individuals, the fact that the mighty Virat
fitness should not be a passing thought but something Kolhi can have bad days just normalises everything
readily available to every individual who wants to about life.”
enrich their lives through this gift of nature. We can
only take care of our loved ones if we first start taking In 20 years down the line, Bihani sees himself
care of ourselves. My mission is to make health and making Boldfit one of India’s premier fitness brands
fitness a lifestyle choice available to everyone and and expanding its reach not only in the online
to make India synonymous with the global industry of domains but in the offline segments as well. He
health and fitness.” He is striving to build this, not only wants to rival global health and fitness giants and
within his organisation but also through his vision of a stamp his mark on this industry. He said, “When
healthy global society. people think of me or Boldfit, I want them to think of
India as a pioneer for revolutionising the healthcare
According to Bihani, wellbeing is a holistic term, and fitness sector in the 21st Century. It has been an
where even inculcation of values such as love for amazing journey so far and I am thrilled about what
the environment and biodiversity are essential to it. is to come.” 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

90 INTERVIEW PRITIKA SINGH

AMWAAKRINEGAPBEOOUPTLTEHEIR
OWN WELLBEING

Pritika Singhbecamethe
CEO of Prayag Group of
Hospitals at the age of 23.
Under her leadership, the Group
expanded and opened at two
more locations. Today, she is
actively pursuing women rights,
philosophy and is a relationship
coach.

S ingh has worked towards women empow-
erment and other women-centric issues.
She has also organised free camps, yearly,
for acid attack victims and undertakes
around 100 surgeries at nominal costs to help better
the lives of these survivors. She has worked alongside
acid attack victims and set up camps to tend to their
needs. A firm believer in achieving what she sets her
mind to, she says that women can do what men can do,
if not better. She completed her post graduate Diploma
in Global Marketing from Regents University, London
and has a Diploma in Marketing from London School
of Economics. Singh shares her journey of how she is
transforming the Indian healthcare sector.

How did your wellbeing journey start and what
does it mean to you?
My wellbeing journey started in 2015, where I began
focusing more on my mind, my thoughts, the way I feel,
the way I react, what triggers it, everything from my
physical and mental fitness and what all does it mean
to me. Later I realised that it means something really
more important than what it actually seems to be. Be it

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BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40 91

Photographs by Indiapicturebudget

my inner wellbeing, my fitness, my mental wellbeing, my “I want to thousands and thousands of people. Moreover, you’re
emotional wellbeing, the environment around me, they all create such a not only providing the employees a decent salary, but,
mean so much to me as these aspects of wellbeing affect positive work also, you get to make them aware about mental health
my life every day. So, I keep reminding myself of that and environment and how they can achieve that positive outlook in life.
this helps me prepare myself for the day and for the days where people Because, most of the people are not aware about it, to
to come. And, I’m ready to step out and face the world. can understand them, life is about earning a good living, they are stuck
that life is not in bread and butter theory. They have been neglecting
What is your vision and mission? the most important thing in the world, their wellbeing.
My vision is to see things the way they are. I dig into the only about And my business model is also about being transparent
roots, from where it is coming, why it is coming, how to let earning money, in what we do, how we do and why we do. I think being
go of it, how to see a new perspective. I want to know it all. transparent helps you connect with people better.
My mission is to help, support and to make people aware it’s also about
about their own wellbeing which is somewhere lost in this self-discovery Who is your favourite person in the wellbeing
materialistic world today.
and self- space other than yourself?
Where do you see yourself 20 years from now? realisation and Well, my favourite person in the wellbeing space other
Twenty years from now, I see myself as a very simple finally attaining than myself would be my mother, Sunita Singh. She has
person, a better version of myself. And I also see myself mental peace” been an inspiration to me, she led me on to the path of
helping and educating others on how to achieve their wellbeing and made sure I understood all its aspects,
mental and emotional wellbeing. I also wish to start an she helped me throughout my wellbeing discovery
empire which helps in creating a healthy work environ- journey. She has been my motivation, my inspiration.
ment where both emotional and mental wellbeing are
the top priorities. I want to create such a positive work What is your definition of wellbeing?
environment where people can understand that life is not For me wellbeing is awareness, awareness to whatever
only about earning money, it’s also about self-discovery is happening inside me and around me. If I feel happy,
and self-realisation and finally attaining mental peace. it’s coming from my heart, when I feel sad, it’s also
coming from my heart, be it any emotion I feel, fear,
Tell us about your business model. anger, everything is coming from my heart. Self-
Well, all my business models are for the people, to the awareness to that level and the ability to let go of
people, for the society and to the society. Our company’s such emotions that depletes your energy and doesn’t
tagline is ‘Sewa Parmodharam’. So, being in a healthcare let you be in a good mental space is something really
industry, it’s very noble in a way that you can work and powerful. Being aware of my emotions, actions and
earn enough money, where I am able to provide jobs to reactions, I think that’s wellbeing for me. And taking full
responsibility of oneself is wellbeing for me too. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

92 INTERVIEW PRITY BANERJEE

Photographs by Ritesh Sharma In a
conversation
WORKING ON with the BW
MENTAL Wellbeing
WELLBEING OF World, Prity
YOUTH AND Banerjee,
CHILDREN Director, Little
Umbrella
Foundation
talked about
her life, journey
to becoming
a wellbeing
advocate and
more.

What is your definition of wellbeing?
Wellbeing is related to the quality of life and value
creation and the state of being comfortably happy in
life’s journey. That also includes coming out of your
own fears and staying positive throughout the various
challenges life throws at us and handling it in a better
way without hampering your mental peace.

How did your wellbeing journey start and what
does it mean to you?
Coming from a small town in Banaras, my journey
started with a management background and a corpo-
rate life. At the age of 23, I realised life was not easy,
it came with many challenges and questions were
often unanswered. Very soon in this journey, I was a
divorced single mother with a small daughter of two

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93BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

years with many societal judgements, provocations “Working on for future generations. Now I have reached out to
and summons which led me to mental trauma and more than 5,000 young minds and more than 1,000
pain. This affected me physically, professionally and
even spiritually. youth wellness young participants who have worked hand in hand.

Also, my profession as a social worker came with a I have been encouraging young people to work for
lot of challenges and a taboo in society because for
a young girl in her 20s, leaving a corporate job and opens a gateway social welfare as well as their own mental wellness. I
starting to contribute to society was a less known path
many would not take. This journey made me under- towards brighter have successfully created a platform ‘Little Umbrella
stand the sheer importance of mental wellness. I first Foundation’ where more than 100 youngsters can
embarked on my journey in 2011, after facing so many
challenges in my life. I realised that the mental trauma opportunitiesfor interact and we have been able to break the taboo.
or pressure which I faced being a wife after marriage
and even in professional life were actually affecting our country and It is a platform where everyone can talk about their
many more others in some or another way. my approach issues and troubles and get instant assistance and
is helping the support from each other. Initially, it was difficult to
I decided to go on a path where I could heal myself break the taboo but once we were successful it’s
and others too. I registered my non-profit company now our regular exercise where young people are
in 2014 – Little Umbrella Foundation. Since then the
journey goes on and now we have young people from youth while helping other children in need. It is a psychologically
all over India working towards mental wellbeing. proven fact that interacting with children helps to

What is your vision and mission? helping the alleviate depression. So working on mental wellbeing
Through the various initiatives, I have taken like
‘Count On Me’ (India’s one of its own mental health children. It’s while helping children in need is a real-time organic
support groups), MAWI (mental health assistance), way to practice mental wellbeing.
webinars on mental wellbeing and my mentorship like a win-
to the youth for social welfare and other different
programs. I aim to reach out to 1 million young people win situation Tell us about your contribution to the field.
while collaborating with various corporations, small The age group of youngsters I empower is 18 to
and medium organisation and NGOs. And make all
of them the protagonists of mental wellness while for both 30, closely the exact average age of India, which is
creating a better society for everyone. The maximum
number to reach out to is not my primary goal. The 29. These are the youth who are focusing on their
primary goal is if I am assisting or mentoring 10 lives,
those 10 lives should get better in real meaning generations” career path, I was a mentor to keep them on the
by doing something good for the other 10 lives
individually. And I am devoted and committed to doing right path through the day to day follow-ups and
this noble work all free from charges as my duty to
humanity, which I have been doing for the last nine activities. When talking about mental wellness and
years now. This gives me the reason for my mental
wellness. empowerment, I give them leadership coaching,

Tell us about your business model. activities for teamwork and a positive approach,
I, as a social worker, started my work nine years back
where I started to create a pool of young volunteers mindfulness through real-time case studies and life
who are willing to join hands and create an impact in
our society by doing various campaigns on awareness skills to handle conflict and come up with coping up

mechanisms in times of difficulties.

Where the mental wellness programs are very costly
and difficult to get for the masses, my programs are
free of cost and work on the ground while reaching
out to the masses who need mental health support.
Working on youth wellness opens a gateway
towards brighter opportunities for our country and
my approach is helping the youth while helping
the children. It’s like a win-win situation for both
generations. So my mentorship is not only helping
one but two powerful generations.

Who is your favourite person in the wellbeing

space other than yourself?
Anyone and everyone who has overcome their own
mental issues through wellness practices and now
contributes towards society to enhance mental
wellness is my favourite in the field of wellbeing. 
 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

94 SPOTLIGHT PURU VARMA

IMPROVING Preventive health and
WELLBEING holistic wellbeing is
WITH
TECHNOLOGY on top of the minds of
Indians, especially post
pandemic. This paved a
new way for the personal
transformation space.
Puru Varma,Partner,
A&H Family Evolution is

transforming the lives
of many people with

Excellence Installations
Technology, which

compresses the time
required to develop
new capabilities and
emotional mastery.

B orn in 1995, Varma is a business strategist
at Antano & Harini. Initially he wanted to
become a CA, just like his dad and earn all
the money and respect that comes with it.
But life had different plans.

“In 2011, my beloved mother passed away to a baneful
disease and I was devastated and shaken. The im-
mediate impact of this was bad — I shut down from
people and started performing less-than-optimally in
academics. But over months, as I thought about the un-
predictable nature of human life, I started asking myself,
“What do I truly want from my life? What is the purpose
of my existence and I started to explore the answer to
these questions, I began to be exposed to the world of
wellbeing and personal transformation. And the more I
explored the arena, the more fascination I developed for
it. I wondered, “What if I could help thousands of people
improve the quality of their lives?” expressed Varma

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95BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

Varma took up Psychology in college with the sole
intention to help people. But he was soon disap-
pointed, that the entire field was filled with theories
on why people behave the way they do but very few
effective methods to actually make, real and lasting
change in people. Going forward Varma dropped out
of college.

Photographs by Indiapicturebudget “Our customers Speaking about the business model, Varma said,
go through “Our customers go through one-on-one mentoring
At the age of 21, Varma decided to drop out of college one-on-one that leads to a highly personalised breakthroughs
and joined Antano & Harini in their quest to create a mentoring that list, focused on key shifts in their career, fami-
trillion dollar Excellence Installation industry. Within a leads to a highly ly, health and legacy altogether. These targeted
year, he was a top performer in sales and marketing and installations, implemented in a timeframe that
within two years, he was one of the core team members most consider impossible, help them create a more
driving the business. harmonious and loving family.” He added, “80 per
cent of our customers, who go through the program
Later on, he joined the A&H Family Evolution startup are so thrilled with the results that they naturally
incubated within Antano & Harini. He had personally de- choose to upgrade to other higher-ticket services
veloped very good Excellence Installation skills in helping such as Fast Track Legacy or Excellence Installations
families come together — turning around relationships, Education. A major component of our growth are
evolving families as well as helping people in toxic rela- referrals within families.”
tionships come out.
personalised Talking about his vision, Varma expressed, “Our
“At the age of 26, we have evolved more than 10,000 breakthroughs vision is to impact millions of families by helping
relationships and changed the trajectories of more than list, focused on them create more harmonious and happier families.
2,500 families. The largest anybody has ever done in the key shifts in their And, to equip parents to raise extraordinary children
world and measured their family evolution for a minimum career, family, who create meaningful impact in the world and in
of two years. We are evolving families with Excellence the process, create generations and generations of
Installations by interrupting patterns and developing excellence.”
emotional wellbeing and innate happiness in the lives of
people,” Varma added. health and legacy Sharing his views about future prospects, Varma
altogether. maintained, “In the next five years, as Partner, A&H
When asked about his wellbeing journey, Varma These targeted Family Evolution, I see myself having impacted
explained, “Many times, it is in the darkest moments installations, millions of families around the world. I see happier
of our lives that we find ourselves. For me, something implemented in parents, more love and meaningful connections
deep within me changed after my mother passed away. a timeframe that sprouting and making this world a better place. And
I started asking myself, if life could be so short and most consider in the next 20 years, I see myself having built sever-
unpredictable, what do I want to do with it, what is the impossible, al ventures within Antano & Harini Group of Compa-
purpose of my life, what makes a human being happy or help them nies and in the process, enabling several industries
sad and why is it that some people are more successful create a more with Excellence Installations Technology.”
than others. And as I did thousands of hours of research harmonious and
to find these answers, I soon realised that I would get loving family” “There are hundreds of niches such as pregnancy,
the greatest happiness and joy in life in making other cancer pain reduction, resolving psychosomatic
people’s wellbeing better.” health issues where Excellence Installations Tech-
nology has produced extraordinary results. Each
of these niches presents a unique opportunity to
revolutionize that particular industry forever,” he
added. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

96 INTERVIEW RICHA SINGH

CREATING
A HAPPIER
INDIA

Richa Singh,CEO S ingh is an IIT Guwahati alumna with specialisation in User Experience Design.
& Co-Founder Post that, she led product development in Webfluenz for three years (ranked
of Yourdost among top 15 social media analytics tools). In March 2014, Webfluenz was
Health Solutions. acquired by Mu Sigma, leading Big Data and analytics solutions provider. She
Founded in 2015, has also worked with DE Shaw & Co and o9 Solution in Interaction Designer and Product
Yourdost is a Management roles. Singh talks about the importance issue of emotional wellbeing with the
holistic emotional children preparing for the competitive exams. She touches upon various facets of a student’s
wellness life and how they can balance their mental wellbeing.
organisation that
provides chat, How did your wellbeing journey start and what does it mean to you?
phone and video My personal journey with wellbeing started right in my childhood. My parents have always
therapy and believed that the body is a temple. They taught us to keep it clean, eat healthy and practice
has a network yoga. Apart from physical wellbeing, they gave equal importance to emotional wellbeing as
of over 900 well.
psychologists,
psychotherapists, As for my journey with Yourdost, I had seen a lot of people around me suffering emotion-
life and career ally right from the days of my IIT preparation. I always believed that this could be avoided.
coaches around The tipping point for me was when my friend at IIT Guwahati committed suicide and none
the country. of us had any idea of her suffering before she took this step. All the while the college had a
counselling cell but no one was approaching the counselors and psychologists available. This
incident impacted me deeply and that’s when I started my research and started looking for

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97BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

answers to what options were available to my friend
and why people were not approaching the available
counselors? This incident ultimately led to my starting
Yourdost.

What is your vision and mission?
We are on a simple mission of creating a happier India.
Like people go to a gym or a run, can people start
taking care of their emotional wellbeing? We want to
support individuals, government, organisation and
institutions to create happier communities.
Where do you see yourself 20 years from now?
I see myself as someone who has significantly contrib-
uted to increase the happiness Index of the world

Tell us about your business model. Photographs by Indiapicturebudget
Yourdost partners with corporates, educational insti-
tutions and government departments to design and “We conduct include leading corporates like BlackBuck, Capillary
execute wellness programs wherein they sign a MoU tailor-made Technologies, CK Birla Group, UpGrad, Dr. Reddy’s
with us and get access to our services. training and Labs, Tata Consumer Products Ltd. and education-
programs for al institutions like IIM Bangalore, IIT Madras, IIT
With a focus on enhancing happiness and resilience organisation Delhi, to name a few.
and also impacting the overall culture of organisation , ’ leaders,
we provide interventions at three levels, viz. managers, Who is your favourite person in the wellbeing
employees, space other than yourself?
Individual Level (Self-Care) —Through Yourdost’s web- staff members, Andy Puddicombe from headspace, I find his story
site/app, individuals get 24x7 instant access to private, students, etc. so inspiring. Our own Sri Sri. I personally feel so
confidential and anonymous professional guidance to help create benefited from his techniques.
from 900+ psychologists and coaches, assessments and execute a
tools to help them understand themselves better and peer support What is your definition of wellbeing?
self-help modules and training to develop skills to take framework and I believe that wellbeing is about having a bal-
care of themselves, face adversities with greater resil- a supportive ance. It all about inculcating old school healthy
ience and also provide support to those around them. and caring team habits into our lives which also gives that sense of
culture” balance — waking up early in the morning, running,
Team Level (Peer-Support) — We conduct tailor-made spending time with loved ones, sharing, appreciat-
training and programs for organisation ’ leaders, ing, caring for each other, spending time in things
managers, employees, staff members, students, etc. to we love, being in the moment etc. and I strongly
help create and execute a peer support framework and believe there are tools which can help us do that.
a supportive and caring team culture. If we all were to do this, there would be wellbeing.
Also, don’t forget that we are human which means
Organizational Level (Workplace Culture) — We proac- we are vulnerable and it’s okay to talk about it,
tively work with organisation ’ leadership through sci- it’s okay to take time to learn tools to manage
entific analysis and data to help them understand and ourselves better. 
fill the gaps at an overall workplace level for building an
empathetic and high-performing culture.

There are a ton of other specialized programs we offer
for founders, expecting mothers, layoff support, etc. We
are now helping over 300 such institutional clients build
happier and more resilient communities. Some of them

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

98 SPOTLIGHT ROHIT DHINGRA

Photographs by Ritesh Sharma

IRLWNEEEFVALIENCLLIHBTSIEENOINGFG Rohit Dhingra,Founder&CEO
of Infinite Health Studios (IHS),
spoke to BW Wellbeing World
about his journey in the wellbeing
industry. IHS is a corporate
wellness organisation providing
comprehensive wellness through
preventive and palliative
healthcare solutions to various
strata of society.

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99BW WELLBEING 40 UNDER 40

“Increasing workload and failing to meet work demand is expanding the pharmacy wing to create an umbrella of
becoming a major cause of health issues in employees,
leading to a stressful corporate life. I used to experience “Through services.
the same, fed up with my deteriorating health; I took
charge of my health and started Yoga to improve the his innate Talking about his vision and mission about the compa-
same. Gradually Yoga became my passion and with my motivation to ny, Dhingra expressed that he intends to establish IHS
two other partners, I founded Infinite Health Studios in educate himself as a premier in the health and wellness sector with a
2013,” said Dhingra, talking about his ideation behind finesse in Yoga & other fitness and wellness /healthcare
setting up the organization. about the services. The agenda is to be an outstanding leader to
current wellness the society by meeting all standards of excellence to
Dhingra began his entrepreneurial journey in the year trends, Dhingra produce globally accepted trainers in the industry. The
2013. With his entrepreneurial entry, he has been goal is to increase the diversification of IHS all over India
engaged in different roles and departments of the has pushed and abroad as well, to create a wellness approach that
organization. Being an avid learner, he always supports boundaries boasts of improvement in individual lives. IHS’s role in
upcoming talent and inculcates the same in the organi- the coming times is to continue to give the best of the
zation. in HIS’s services through various awareness campaigns among
development the generic audience so as to promote the importance
His strength lies in his ability to understand the trends of a healthy lifestyle.
and how they may impact the clients. Through his
innate motivation to educate himself about the current to bridge the Now with more than 1,000 locations in over 15 diversified
wellness trends, Dhingra has pushed boundaries in HIS’s gap between segments and catering to over 50 lakh lives, the compa-
development to bridge the gap between the current ny’s idea is to expand its portfolio as an aggregator and
Covid situation, wellness/ healthcare trends and clients’ the current make all services available digitally.
needs.
Covid situation, The motivation that keeps Dhingra driven comes from
He believes that there are infinite possibilities & explo- wellness/ his inspirational figure, Neerja Birla, the Founder and
rations of various kinds, he wants IHS to customize and Chairperson of Mpower. Through Mpower, Birla hopes to
be there across the country at every corner, measur- healthcare spread awareness about mental health, alleviate stigma
ing the need of customers and delivering with a price trends and and provide quality care to individuals from all walks
point that is acceptable and services are bundled with clients’ needs” of life and from all sections of the community. Dhingra
quality. said, “In a nutshell, Neerja has been a real inspiration to
me as she is trying to bridge the prevailing gap between
When Dhingra was asked what wellbeing meant to him, healthcare/wellness facilities and society.”
he explained, “Wellbeing is a permutation and a balance
of physical, emotional, social, spiritual, intellectual and While responding to where does he sees himself in 20
economical. Hence when there is absolute equilibrium years down the line, he said, “I see myself taking IHS into
of all these penetrations and when your mind and body various healthcare and wellness consortiums, merging
equates or strikes a balance to meet all end situations in it with similar companies in the space and working as a
life, wellbeing gets achieved. Hence I named the tag line one-stop solution provider with end to end management
of IHS as stretched but unstressed. of all health, wellness and medical services and to make
it an organisation that can be looked upon as a 360-de-
Dhingra’s business model started with a Yoga studio gree approach to wellness and be it in the space of b2b
in Delhi and moved the concept with home healthcare or b2b2c or b2c, providing a gamut of services right from
model to a vicinity of two to three areas and one city and fitness, wellbeing, EAP programs, standalone wellness
further expanded this to 46 cities in two years. Today, his activations, services related to pharmacy, health checks,
organisation has over 100 offerings and service deliver- preventive healthcare approach and be digitalisation
ables in the health and wellness space. oriented for all services across the country including tier
1/2/3 and rural districts.”

The model now is penetrating with customised wellness He further added that as the name of its organisation
services like ergonomics, consultations, musical fitness suggests, Infinite, he aims to take his company to reach
programs, wellness mela, health check-up and testing, infinite levels. 

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022

100 INTERVIEW SAHIL GUPTA

RESWPAEEBCLOTLUB&TETCINRAGURSIEST,

Sahil Gupta,HRManageratPernodRicardIndia(PRI),startedhisworkin2018
with the launch of PRI’s flagship wellness program – Ananda, which focuses on the
primary aspect of holistic wellness. Gupta has done his B.Tech in Computer Science

and has an MBA in Human Resource Management. He comes with an industry
experience of close to four years. Currently, being a part of Pernod Ricard India
Operations team, he manages the entire manufacturing population of over 500
employees spread across more than 30 manufacturing sites. In conversation with
BW Wellbeing World, Gupta shares glimpses of his journey, vision, mission and

future plans.

My wellbeing journey started when I joined Pernod Ricard India (PRI) in May 2018. Coinci-
dentally, my joining was around the time when PRI had just launched its flagship wellness
program – Ananda. Working on Ananda has been about two key aspects:

• Holistic wellness i.e., wellness not merely seen in terms of physical and mental wellbeing but also other
dimensions of wellness (such as spiritual, emotional, occupational, financial etc.)

• Consistency i.e. every employee of the organisation should have the same wellness experience irre-
spective of his/her location, designation, department etc.

What is your vision and mission?
I would like to be in a leadership role preferably in HR where I can make a difference to the organisation
and its people. In addition, I think I would enjoy being a change partner leading huge transformation
projects to help organization(s) mirror and align with the pace of change in the outside world. What really
excites me about leading change efforts is the potential end state where something significant has been
achieved while ensuring the success of people involved in the process.

BW WELLBEINGWORLD | MARCH 2022